Eve versus The Legion
by toefungusxxx
Summary: Eve is the Lone Wanderer, a doctor and scientist from the Capitol Wasteland. With a new dream for Project Purity V2, she heads out to the Mojave and the Hoover Dam. A run-in with a man named Courier Six changes her life forever. Kidnapped by Vulpes Inculta and now forced to work for The Legion, Eve must make difficult choices.
1. Rabbit meets Fox

It's been three years ago since I left Vault 101 after my Dad disappeared. Dad left me to fend for myself, though I know he didn't count on the rebellion that happened shortly thereafter. I was thrust from my safe cocoon underground to the Capitol Wasteland. I watched as the people I grew up with killed each other over politics and the fear of change. A fear that I, of course, could understand, yet was forced to embrace.

Wandering around, I'd become something of an unwilling celebrity, even earning the moniker "The Lone Wanderer" by a radio DJ who actually became a friend. When all I had was the blue issued vault suit on my back, a colour that clashed with the drabness of the wasteland, I got noticed.

I'd been training with my dad to be a doctor and scientist like him as early as I can remember. Instead of normal lullabies, my dad James would make up silly songs about the periodic table. I'd been a good student, far surpassing my peers, so it was no surprise when my G.O.A.T. placement test put me in an internship with Dad and Jonas, who was like my uncle. I still vividly remember seeing Jonas' lifeless body, killed by the power hungry and moronic Officer Mack after Dad escaped. His eyes had been open, unseeing, no longer filled with the laughter they were once known for. It was my first real taste of loss and it tasted bitter.

Managing to track down my Dad, who was naively surprised to see me, he let me into his most coveted secret: Project Purity. The dream of my long dead mother and a handful of scientists trying to make the world a better place. Free, clean water for everyone. It was the most noble of dreams. And yet, for all my love and respect for Dad, something had tainted our relationship. He didn't trust me to do much with the science part, and used me and my good reputation as a gopher for the things he needed. I'd wanted, so badly, to be working with him on the project. I'd read his notes, I understood it, yet in his eyes I was still a child. It was Dr. Madison Li that I worked the most with, she appreciated my intellect and optimism. I never knew what became of her.

Two years ago my dad, my mentor, my life, was killed. Any childish annoyance I felt for him disappeared the moment he sacrificed himself to save the project instead of letting it fall into the wrong hands.

With the help of the Brotherhood of Steel, myself and the scientists who survived continued Project Purity, with me now at the helm. It was done. Aqua Pura was bottled and distributed for everyone, freely. When the tests came back that the water was clean, we all held hands and jumped into the water, fully clothed, full of light.

Six months ago, I left the Capitol Wasteland with a caravan full of Aqua Pura and dreams of something new. I went trying to expand on Dad's research. I'd heard that there were some vaults in this area, and I'd hoped a few of them hadn't been scavenged too badly. If I could find another G.E.C.K. I thought I might be able to clean whole acres of land, clean water, clean air, new growth. It was ambitious, but it was the only thing I had. Hoover Dam would be the perfect place to start Project Purity V2. The Colorado River was clean enough, but Project Purity V2 was more about new growth and getting the water to all the small settlements that were too far away from the river itself. With a G.E.C.K. I could restart the growth that was lost from the old world. With my predictions, the areas surrounding the Colorado River would be teeming with trees, greenery, and fertile soil in a decade.

I made it to Goodsprings shortly after that. That was when I helped Doc Mitchell with the hardest surgery either of us had ever done. With two gunshot wounds point blank to the head, how the man had managed to stay alive was nothing short of a miracle, if such things in this world still existed. When the man known as Courier Six's eyes opened in the middle of the surgery and looked right at me -right through me - I felt a terror like I'd never felt before. The kind that starts as a spark and then makes your whole body shiver. How anyone could awaken in the middle of a surgery being filled with so much drugs I didn't know. All I know is that those dead eyes haunted me in my nightmares now. What could I have done? I shot him full of med-x and continued my work. Doc and I operated on him for 18 hours straight. I didn't think he'd make it, but the next day, he was still alive. I waited until he was stable enough before leaving, but I made sure I wasn't there when he regained consciousness. At the time I thought I was just being silly, now I knew better.

Doc Mitchell offered to keep me on, even though he said the work was boring at best. This was the most he'd done as a doctor in years. I had to decline, but I promised I'd be back to visit.

I don't know if I'd ever go back to see Doc again because the guilt of saving the life of a monster haunted me. Now Six was known throughout the Mojave as "Nuntius", the messenger. A minion of Caesar, he'd become a monster: selling slaves, killing NCR pilgrims; the rumour was that he relished in bloodshed. Whole settlements disappeared overnight, the only message left were the crucified bodies of the people who the Legion didn't want.

I'd spent a while working with a few doctors at makeshift clinics and going on rounds with medical caravans. They were grateful for my help and the fact that I didn't really want payment, just supplies and information. I learned a great deal about the different plants that grew in the area, and their medicinal purposes. And, of course, I loved to distribute the bottles of water I had, the freshest in the world, as far as I knew. It didn't take long to run out, but I had the hope I'd make more. Some day. Most of the doctors were just that, medical professionals with basic training trying to save lives with what little they had. They were amazing, but didn't have the knowledge or resources I needed for my dream.

And just a week ago I made it to New Vegas, hoping that the city would offer answers. And safety. The Mojave was in turmoil, with too many pieces on the chessboard. I wanted no part of it.

I had always been grateful for the progressiveness of Elder Lyons and the Brotherhood of Steel because their views aligned with my own: that good things should be free and shared in a world where people had to scavenge daily just for radiated water. It made perfect sense to me, and it is hard to live in a world where that wasn't the common goal of everyone. Here though, in New Vegas, every faction had an agenda. The NCR was where I thought I'd get the most help, but the Legion was giving them a lot of pain. The Legion...I'd never seen them, thankfully, but I'd heard about them. I'd heard about this Caesar, the slavery, the killing, and of course, the Messenger. My monster.

I could see the ambition in Ambassador Crocker's eyes, when I finally got to meet him. Even though he seemed like a peaceful man, his statements on "benefits for the NCR" made me wary. He hadn't heard of any vaults that had a G.E.C.K, but he was going to try to help me find one, of course only if I swore loyalty to the NCR, which left a poor taste in my mouth.

When I told him that I wanted the G.E.C.K to be used fairly, he'd smiled chidingly in my face like I was a child and said, "Honey, here everyone fights for everything."

So now here I was, sitting at the bar at The Tops casino, drinking an agave juice and wondering what the hell my next move was. The people here needed this, not just the NCR, or New Vegas, but everyone. I sighed and leaned my chin on my hand. I'd even dressed up for my meeting with Crocker, now I wonder if presenting myself as a lady instead of a doctor was the real problem. I'd wanted to show him intelligence and sophistication, instead I felt like a fool in a blue dress. My father hadn't given up, even trapped in the vault. He'd always been working on Project Purity, even though it had taken decades. It was frustrating to know that now the only thing that was keeping me from starting a new one was politics. Politics and a G.E.C.K.

"Hello." A silken male voice woke me from my melancholy thoughts. I hadn't even heard him come up beside me. I looked over to see a handsome man dressed in a dapper suit with a matching fedora. He was wearing dark sunglasses, even inside.

Nodding back, I hoped to convey disinterest. I was used to these guys here at The Tops coming over and using awkward and frankly embarrassing pick-up lines on me. I'd shut enough of them down that I thought they'd gotten the message.

"Can I join you?" He gestured to the empty seat across from me. I'd chosen a table in the far corner hoping to be alone, but since it was pretty dead tonight, it looks like I wasn't really that well hidden.

"I'm not very good company right now." I desperately wanted him to take the hint and leave, but he stood there, unsure, looking about like he was lost.

"To be honest, neither am I. I've had a rough week. Misery loves company." He ran his hand over the fine, barely visible stubble on his chin. I looked closer. His shoulders were slightly slumped, and his fine suit had dust by his shoes. He did look miserable.

"All right. Maybe some company isn't so bad after all."

When he took his hat off, I was surprised at how fine and light his hair was. It was almost white. It was cut close to his head and slightly wavy. He put his sunglasses on the table and smiled at me with the bluest eyes I'd ever seen. I'd read about seas in exotic places where the waters were so clear and blue that you could see all the way to the bottom. To me, his eyes were like this. So transparent and bright. I realised I was staring and I blushed, taking a sip of my juice to do something other than look like an idiot.

"My friends call me Fox." He reached over and softly shook my hand. His skin was calloused, but soft. He obviously worked with his hands a lot. His fingers were long and tapered, suited for an instrument. His voice was like a low purr. I had the feeling he never had to yell to get anyone's attention; his was the kind of voice you just wanted to listen to.

"Eve, nice to meet you, Fox. Is that a nickname?"

He gestured the waitress over. While waiting for her, he answered, "Last name. My first name is embarrassing."

Thinking of Knight Captain Gallows of the Lyons Pride, I smiled. Gallows, fiercest, most intense man I'd ever known with the first name of Irving. I understood what Fox meant.

Fox ordered a whiskey neat, and looked at me expectantly.

"I'll just have another agave juice, thanks."

The waitress nodded and gave Fox a once-over with a very interested look in her eye. It was interesting how he didn't even give her the time of day.

"You don't drink?"

"Not often, no. Only when there's something to celebrate. Hasn't been enough of that lately." I rubbed my thumb along the glass absently.

Fox made a sympathetic sound. "Tell me about it. I came here looking to trade, but my caravan was ambushed by raiders. They killed my brahmin and took everything from me. I barely managed to make it here in one piece." He shook his head and sighed, looking sadly at the table. "All that medicine...gone." The waitress brought our drinks.

"Medicine?" That piqued my interest, being a doctor myself. "Are you a doctor?"

"No, no. I'm not smart enough for that," he laughed ruefully. "I own - owned, now I guess - a caravan with my uncle. He asked me to send his extra medical supplies to places that were short, for a small profit. I just came from Goodsprings. I was going to try to make a deal in Freeside but I only made it with the clothes on my back and a few caps."

"Wait, Goodsprings? Do you work with Doc Mitchell?" I asked excitedly. I hadn't heard from him in a few months, not that I was worried since I'd been traveling. I was eager to hear about him.

"Yes." Fox gave me a suspicious look. "Do you know him?"

"I met him a few months back. I assisted him with a surgery." I left out who the surgery was for, knowing Six's reputation, people might not take too kindly that I'd saved the life of a sadistic murderer. "He's a very kind man," I added.

"Yes, he is. We must have just missed meeting each other. To a small wasteland and meeting new friends." He held up his glass and we toasted. A few moments of comfortable silence came between us. I found myself blushing under his intense gaze. "Can I ask you why you look so…sad?"

Ah hell, Eve, take a chance, open up, a voice in my head was telling me. "I have a dream that...is proving more difficult than I thought." I found myself telling him all about Project Purity and my father. He listened so patiently, with the right sympathetic noises as I explained how I wanted a better world. "Sounds so naive, doesn't it?" I snorted. "Like the dream of a child."

"No, not at all." He reached out and put his hand on mine. "It sounds noble. It's...refreshing." There was a flutter of electricity that danced in my stomach. He slowly rubbed his thumb over my knuckles.

The Tops lounge had filled up quite a bit since we'd been talking. A live band was going on the stage. They started playing an upbeat, jazzy tune. Some couples got up to dance. I was just grateful to have something to take my mind off the fact that his hand was still on mine and he was still staring at me. I was no good in these kinds of situations. Give me a man with two gunshots to the head and I was as calm as could be. As soon as anyone took a romantic interest in me, I was like a deer in the headlights. In my experience, men were like Butch and his dumb gang, all hands and groping, like you owed them something for just being a woman. But Fox's hand was soft and patient. He wasn't staring at me anymore, but at the band. I took a moment to study him. His face was chiseled like a marble statue I'd seen in the Arlington Library. Fox's nose was long and straight. A strong nose which would overwhelm a less handsome man's face. The bottom of his nose formed a perfect 90 degree angle with his lips, the top one slightly bigger than the bottom, meeting a strong chin and sharp jaw.

Perhaps he felt me staring, because he turned and smiled slightly. He said something, but I couldn't hear over the music. "What?"

He didn't answer but stood and held out his hand, nodding to the dance floor. Taking it, he led me to the other couples. The music was fast-paced and fun. I admit I was nervous at first, but Fox easily took the lead, and guided me expertly around. I was out of breath from laughing so much. Even if I was a horrible dancer, Fox didn't seem to care. Near the end of the song, he surprised me and twirled me away from him, my dress floating up around my knees. When I spun back, he bent me down in a dip. It was graceful and frankly flattering to be partnered with an expert like that.

I laughed out of breath, not remembering having so much fun in a long time. Not fun like this, fun with someone else physically. I'd read about an dancing sport called ballet, was this what they felt like? Moving in time with the music and with another person? It was fun and intimate.

"This one's for all you lovers out there," the band's singer announced. The music started with a soft saxophone. It was a slow song.

I started to walk back towards their table, but Fox held on tight, pulling me closer. "Don't go yet," he whispered in my ear, his breath tickling the sensitive baby hairs there. I shivered. One hand held her possessively around my waist. Chest to chest, we slow danced. After a few seconds, I relaxed enough to put my head on his shoulder. He smelled like the desert, with sweat and dust, and something like leather. I was sure many men smelled similar, but for some reason it was the nicest smell I could remember. He still commanded the dance, and I could only sway with him, but it was more like a long, intimate hug than anything. We could be stepping out of time with the music for all I knew or cared.

The music came to a soft close, ending with the saxophone's gentle stop. I stayed close. Fox didn't seem to mind. It wasn't until the music started up, to a fast tempo again that I shakily stepped back. I was overcome with shyness and didn't want to make eye contact.

Fox pushed the tendrils of hair that had escaped the ribbon holding it all together "Thank you for the dance, Eve," he said softly.

"I always thought I was such a bad dancer," I replied with a lame laugh.

"Maybe you just needed the right partner." He was smiling slightly when I finally looked at him. The smile didn't reach his eyes, which were still so intense. "Would you come up to my room, Eve?"

I swallowed. I'd never done anything like this before. I could talk for hours about enzymes, and the medical properties of common plants in the area, but when it came to romance I was the first to admit I am a bit behind. I blame it on being raised in the vault, where the male prospects were less than suitable. Dad always made certain that I knew my worth, and so I aimed for better than Butch's rude comments and snide smiles. Yet, not having much male companionship had stunted me, it was true. I wasn't sure how to be flirty or play coy.

Fox must have sensed my inner battle because he stepped back and held both my hands hands gently. "You don't have to do anything you're not comfortable with. Come have one drink with me."

"Okay." Okay.


	2. Fox takes Rabbit

_Author's Note: thank you all so much for reading. Any criticisms, comments, edits are greatly appreciated. The following chapter does contain a sex scene so be warned._

While Eve nodded shyly, Vulpes Inculta, also known as Fox, smirked over her head. Predictable degenerate women, he thought to himself. He discreetly signalled to the Frumentarii agent sitting down at a table nearby.

How easy it was to find out the small details about her from Doc Mitchell's interrogation. Nuntius had put him on the right path, for sure. At first, they were going to bring Doc Mitchell to the Fort, but after some subtle probing, it turned out that this Eve was the one who had saved the man formerly known as Courier Six's life. Despite her modesty when telling Vulpes the story, Doc Mitchell had made it clear that while he was a good country doctor, Eve was a master surgeon. Doc Mitchell had to be put down when it became clear he wouldn't let them be on their way without a fight. Nuntius had done it himself, with absolutely no regard to the fact that the doctor had helped save his life. It was cold, even for Vulpes' standards, which is why he'd never let himself be in debt to anyone. Then again, Nuntius wasn't right in the head. He was like a wild mongrel dog who was only loyal as long as the food kept coming. Still, Caesar found him useful, and Caesar wanted Eve. Though Caesar never admitted anything, Vulpes watched him enough to notice there was something wrong. Often he'd stop in the middle of a sentence for a few seconds unblinking, then carry on like nothing happened. So of course when Nuntius told them about the doctor who took out two bullets from his brain and stitched him back together, Caesar was interested.

How sweet she'd looked sitting all sadly at that table. An easy flower to pluck. He'd done this kind of work before: find a sad woman, listen to her pathetic tale, seduce her or kill her, then report back to camp. He had thought Eve would be pining over something vapid, and was surprised at her intelligence and obvious passion for this "project". He barely understood the concept, and she'd made sure to explain it simply. It was fascinating. He would have to report this to Caesar as well.

And now Eve was looking at him with shy, shining eyes so brown they were almost black. So innocent and trusting. He was going to lead this rabbit right into the fox's den, so to speak.

He led her to his room on the fifth floor, one specifically chosen beside the service elevator. It was a bigger suite, with a small table and bar at the entrance, a large bed in the middle, and a door leading to the ensuite. He poured them two scotches and placed one glass in her shaking hand.

"You're nervous." It was a statement, not a question from him. Normally at this point women would be already in his bed. And sometimes he'd oblige their whims until he got bored of them.

He watched her take a small sip and make a face. "I...I don't usually do this." She chewed her lip contemplatively before adding, "I mean, I've never done this."

Well this was a pleasant surprise. What an enjoyable assignment. Playing ever the gentleman, he took the drink from her, set it down on the table, and tilted her head up. "We don't have to do anything if you don't want. Just one drink, remember." He smiled reassuringly and she predictably ate it up. She stepped up on her tiptoes and kissed him softly, experimentally on the lips. Vulpes let her decide how far she wanted to take it. It was a different pace to keep up the noble gentleman facade in privacy, but he would. When she pressed up against him, he opened his mouth and touched his tongue to hers. She whimpered and he fought the urge to tear her clothes off right then and there.

Breaking the kiss, he touched his fingers to the side of her face. She was so pale, it was obvious she'd been raised in a vault. He bet she burned in the sun just like he did. His thumb slid over the bottom of her heart-shaped lips, so red and juicy like a ripe mutfruit. When she opened them and cautiously licked him with her tongue he thought he'd explode right there. He would have her first. He knew he should leave her intact, no matter what Caesar planned with her after he got what he needed, a virgin was a valuable commodity. She'd probably be given to a high-ranking legionnaire as a wife, the greatest prize. But no, if he had to come to this profligate-filled city, with its sin and sex and disrepute, then he was going to make it worth it.

He pulled her glossy black hair out from the ribbon barely holding it in place anymore. It was curly and bounced freely around her shoulders. He kissed her again, this time not gently, not caring anymore about her shyness. Their lips crashed together and he grabbed the back of her head, fisting that thick hair. She kissed him back, trying to match him, no longer unsure but still inexperienced. Her hands were holding onto his arms like a vice. This was passion, he thought. This was a gift from Mars himself.

Breaking the kiss, he stepped back and took his jacket off, folding it neatly across the back of the chair. Watching her, he unbuttoned his shirt, shrugging it off and tossing it over the jacket. She looked at him like a prey animal, both fearful and curious.

"You're very...well-developed," she blurted out, then made a horrified face of embarrassment.

"Thank you." Inwardly, he was smirking. "Let me help you with that." Turning her around, he pulled down the back zipper of her dress. Pulling it over her shoulders and letting it pool at her ankles he marvelled at the dark brown freckles splattered randomly over her porcelain skin. It was like looking up at the night sky and seeing pictures in the stars. He admired her form from behind. Her bottom would make even Venus jealous, he decided. She was curved and soft. She unclasped her bra herself and turned around, holding her arms in front of her breasts. This uncertainty of hers was addictive. Patience, he told himself. It's more fun to let the prey come to you. Slowly, with a seduction he doubt she knew she had, she opened arms. Her breasts were full and lush. He wanted to knead them with his knuckles like a baker. Yes, she was a dark-haired Venus, this vixen.

"You're beautiful," he murmured. A compliment, sent out just right. It was amazing how a few choice words could leave a woman panting and preening.

"Thank you. I think you're beautiful too."

That was new. He'd never been called beautiful before. Of course, he knew he was considered handsome by women, many had told him that. Not wanting to dwell on it, he sunk to his knees and pulled her white cotton panties down to her ankles. He pressed his head against her pubic hair and inhaled. She smelled so sweet. Encouraging her to step a bit wider, he opened her labia and licked her clit gently. She gasped and grabbed his head with her hands. "Easy," he said softly. He gently probed her labia, noting how wet she already was. He stroked her up and down a few times before gently pressing his middle finger inside of her, just a bit. He could feel her shaking, even from just this. He stroked inside her softly, feeling the moist heat inside a place where no man had ever been.

"F-Fox," she stammered, her legs trembling.

He silenced her by latching on to her clit with his mouth. Gently, he traced figure-eights, pausing every few seconds to suckle at her. Between his fingers and his mouth, her body became more and more unstable. Her breathing was hitching at her throat. His name, his real name, became a chant on her lips and when she came singing it, he nearly burst in his pants.

Vulpes could tell she was having trouble standing, she was shaking so hard from the aftershocks of the orgasm. He stood and scooped her failing body up, carrying her to the bed.

He lay over her, pants tight and his cock begging to be freed. Taking one of her erect nipples in his mouth, he tasted it and teased it with his teeth and tongue. Eve made mewling noises and arched her back. Not able to wait any longer, he freed himself from his pants and underwear, squaring himself between her legs. He gently pushed himself against her opening, slowly inching further and further in. Mars, but she was tight, his Venus. Tight and wet and she clenched against him like a sheath. He was surprised at how little resistance she had, and how she didn't seem to be in much pain for her first time. For a slight second, he wondered if the little profligate had lied about her first time, but he was an expert liar himself, and didn't think she was. Her movements against his body were at times clumsy as she tried to find a rhythm. Vulpes was patient with her and let her find her bearings before changing tempo. As he pushed into her, he marveled at how sexy she was, in her innocence. With some women, it was obviously a dramatic act. Every moan, touch, pant was carefully scripted for him. With Eve, she was unabashedly herself, flushing and digging one hand into the flesh of his back, while the other hand pushed against the wall for support. There was a sheen of sweat covering both their skin now.

"Please…" she begged.

"What, mea lepusculus?" My little rabbit. Why he switched to Latin, he wasn't sure.

"Kiss...me..."

So he did. He kept kissing her as he felt her clench around him. She came and he caught her sighs and moans right into his mouth. When he finished, he did it inside of her. Something he never did with profligates, but she felt too good.

Eve was shuddering from the aftershocks of their lovemaking, purring as she held on to him. He rearranged himself around her, cradling her head on his arm.

One might wonder why he would give a soon-to-be slave pleasure and the reason was simple: to give a woman great pleasure, only to take it away, cowed them more. Profligate women were whores, and the shame they would feel once he revealed himself would be greater than if he'd just taken what he wanted. She would live with double the shame.

They stayed in an embrace for a few moments, until both their hearts stopped pounding. When Vulpes finally moved away, Eve made a noise of protest. "Let me get you a cloth."

Vulpes walked to the bar.

"Fox?"

He looked over and saw Eve sitting up wrapped in the bedsheet looking around his room.

"How is it that you have this room? If you were robbed?" There was a scared suspicion in her voice, and rightly so.

"Ah, that's a good story." He walked back over to her, wet cloth in hand. "One for another time, mea lupusculus." He pushed the cloth over her face. She struggled hard, but he easily overpowered her until her cries subsided and she slumped to sleep.


	3. Run Rabbit Run

The first thing I noticed upon waking up was that the light blinded me. That and I had a really bad headache. Blinking slowly a few times, I saw I was in a wagon with a crude tarp over the top, shielding me from the sun. My left arm felt lighter because my Pip-Boy was gone. I'd left it in my room at The Tops, didn't I? What did I remember? Think, Eve! Sitting at the bar. That man, Mr. Fox...Oh no. I flushed with shame remembering what we'd done. It was nice, he was nice. No, wait, no he was not nice. I was so stupid. I should have known better. At least he'd been kind enough to put me back in my clothes. A stupid blue dress that I'd bought from Moira. I'd worn it as my celebration dress after we'd gotten started on Project Purity with Dad and Dr. Li. I remember having a glass of wine with Dr. Li and her telling me about my mother and her passion for the project and her love of old world mythology. That's where our family mantra had come from: I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To the thirsty I will give water without cost from the spring of the water of life.

I tried to move to see outside, but a clanking of chains around my feet stopped me. What was going on? There was a bottle of water beside me and I realised my throat was parched. It looked a bit dirty, not like the Aqua Pura I helped create, but it felt so good when I swallowed it. Not too much too fast, just a few sips to get the cotton feeling out of my mouth.

"Hey," I coughed out. No answer, but I could hear people walking around me. From the small slit in the tent I knew it was day time. "Hey!" I yelled louder. A loud thump answered me.

"Quiet, profligate!"

"Where am I? Who are you?" I made a show of rattling my chains. The wagon stopped and the front flap was rudely pushed open.

A man wearing a tight-fitted leather cap, red shoulder pads, and a skirt started yelling at me to be quiet. I recognised his uniform from the various descriptions I'd heard here and there. They were Legion troops. I had been kidnapped by the Legion. I sat back in shock and a cold numbness filled my body.

Hours seemed to go by. My butt was numb from sitting on such a hard surface for a long time. I had some chances to think about my situation. The man, Fox, had obviously used medicine like a bait, and I blindly took it. He listened to my story about Project Purity with interest. Could it be that the Legion wanted that technology? It seemed off-base, because the rumours were that the Legion was adverse to using technology. Still, something like Purity would be a game changer for anyone. I was always too damned trusting. Always trying to see the best in people. If I hadn't been born in the vault I doubt I'd be so optimistic now. The vault, for all the priviledge it offered, was a safe coffin. Looking back, maybe I should have stayed there and helped Amata take control. Instead I had to follow Dad, always the doting daughter, always wanting to be the very best I could for him. He sacrificed himself so that Project Purity wouldn't fall into the wrong hands and I was stuck alone, finishing his dream. No, that's not fair, I would have done it anyway. Dad, what would you do?

I must have dozed off because I was awoken by the cart stopping and the sounds of footsteps around it. The small gash in the flap showed it must have been close to night time.

The same Legion soldier appeared and harshly told me to get out. I scrambled clumsily as it was difficult with the chains on my feet. When I got near enough to the exit, the strange soldier grabbed my feet and hauled me out. The sun was setting and the sky to the west was painted in a beautiful pink. The legionaries has already set up camp.

"Sit," he commanded, pointing to a small fire they'd started. Largely ignored except for the occasional glares and slight glances, I sat while I was given some sort of meat on a stick. The meat was gamey, but I was so hungry I didn't care. It barely felt like enough.

"What do you want with me?" I asked the soldier. He ignored me. In fact, most of them were quiet, and I could barely hear what they were saying. It was such a weird language, like Latin mixed with English. Being a doctor, I knew enough Latin words, but I couldn't speak it fluently. Their Latin was better than mine. What a strange culture. I should have realised when Fox called me "mea lupusculus", little rabbit. Rabbit and Mr. Fox, how utterly patronising. He was baiting me, seeing if I would understand. Flushing with anger and shame, it was the realisation of the pleasure he'd given me that distracted me from saving myself.

"What's your name?" Again, no response. I sighed. I wasn't going to get anything out of him. Curiously, I noticed he had a key hanging on his belt. "I have to pee." He sighed with annoyance.

"Sequi me." He stood and grabbed my hands roughly, pulling me to my feet. He shoved me in front of him a few meters from the camp. It was clumsy walking with the chains around my feet, but they were long enough that I could make small steps.

I was still exposed, easily seen by the legionnaires at the camp. "Please," I whimpered. "I don't want them to watch." I gestured to the camp where a few soldiers quickly looked away at being caught staring.

He rolled his eyes and swore something under his breath. To his comrades, he called out something I couldn't quite understand, something in Latin about a shy bladder, maybe? Their laughter followed us as we found an abandoned car to hide behind. It was far enough that I couldn't make out the features of the men back at the camp, though I could see the fire. It would have to do.

I made a show of being slow and clumsy. I pulled down my panties and squatted, then fell over. "Can you help me up?" I asked meekly.

As the soldier, muttering, "Stultus mulier" under his breath bent over, I reached over and hit him over the head with a rock I'd grabbed from the ground. He was dazed, but not out. Blood dripped from his temple. He stumbled forward, touching the wound incredulously, so I kicked out his knee, then hit him again. He fell on my legs. I checked his pulse, he was still alive. Hopefully he'd just wake up with a headache, but I hadn't been thinking about brain damage when I'd hit him. Grunting, I slowly moved him off of me, but he was heavy with all his armour. The key, luckily, fit the locks around my ankles; my gamble had paid off. I put his helmet on the top of the hood of the car hoping that the soldiers would see the silhouette and think we were just taking a long time. "Let's see how you like it, asshole," I whispered, locking his ankles up.

Unseen, I stayed low as I creeped from behind the car to the ditch beside the road. There wasn't much for cover, but I could run while crouching for a bit until I found something better.

I had no idea where I was, but I knew if I followed the road there would have to be something. There was no way I could on this path for long, that would be the first place they'd look. When I saw a small dune, I ran up it, tripping on my flat dress shoes. I was going away from the road now, onto the desert sands that were thankfully cooler now that it was night. There was no light anymore, the sun had set. I missed the light of my Pip-Boy. I also missed its map because I had no idea where I was.

"Just keep going, just keep going," I repeated to myself. One step at a time. You can do this, Eve, just keep walking. I am the Alpha and the Omega, I am the Alpha and the Omega.

Tired and out of breath, I was slowing down. Even with just the clothes on my back I felt heavy. I was thirsty and hungry again. So when I heard a whistle off in the distance, I counted my lucky stars.

"Hello?" I yelled out hoarsely.

From out of the darkness, a figure walked up to me. A man in leather armour with a pistol at his waist. He looked like he'd been traveling as well, with dust on his boots and face. He had a bandana at his neck.

"Hey there, you lost or somethin'?" He asked.

I nodded frantically. "Yes. Please, do you have any water?"

"Sure." He tossed me a canteen which I caught clumsily with two hands. I drank selfishly until I felt bloated. "What are you doing out here?"

"I...got lost from the road," I lied lamely. He only nodded, not seeming to care. I handed back his canteen and said my thanks.

"Well…" he said slowly, "suppose I should bring you back to the camp."

"Where is that? Are we near a town?"

"Nope." Now he was looking at me too intensely. I wasn't comfortable.

"Well, if you could just point me to the nearest town I can find my way." I backed up a few paces.

"Don't think so," he drawled. "I think me and the boys'll have some fun with you."

I turned to run, but those damned shoes slipped half off my feet and I stumbled enough for him to grab my arm. "Let go!" I hit him but it was feeble due to my lost footing. He pulled out his gun and aimed it at me almost casually. He pointed with it in a direction. His message was clear: walk.

His camp was about ten minutes away. Just a campfire and three men sitting around it laughing and talking. They stilled as they saw me, then laughed when they saw the man behind.

"Look what I found, boys!" The man cried out. "Dessert!"

A taller, fair-haired man with a bushy beard stood up. He walked over to me and looked me over. "She's a looker," he said softly. "Save her for the boss."

"What? No! I found her fair and square!" My captor pulled me possessively against him.

"Hector, you idiot, you fucked up big time when you didn't get that caravan. The boss is gonna be fucking pissed at you. This here might settle your debts."

"Fuck." Hector's grip on my arms loosened. He shoved me to the bearded man. "Fine."

So here I was, tied up with rope to a tree. Caught again.


	4. Fox hunts Rabbit

_Author's Note: This chapter has a bit of a non-consensual scene, some light spanking_

Vulpes Inculta was livid. Not that a normal person could tell; he kept his emotions in check. The sniveling legionary disgusted him.

"You're telling me that you were overwhelmed by an unarmed _woman_?" He asked him softly.

The legionary only nodded, knowing that begging wouldn't help. With lightning speed, Vulpes sliced the man's throat with his machete. He watched dispassionately as the man clutched the gaping wound. It took only seconds before he slumped over dead. Failure was not an option in the Legion, and this failure was as unacceptable as it came.

The other soldiers didn't even glance down at the dead body, for it was now as if he never existed.

Vulpes learned that a few scouts had picked up the trail along the road. He would have to wait until morning to see her tracks clearly. If Vulpes had been with the wagon sooner, he would have made sure Eve hadn't escaped. Alas, he'd been held up in New Vegas, closing out Eve's room account and spinning a tale of her leaving New Vegas for good, and with a man she'd just met. His spies would help the rumour get as far as the NCR ambassador she'd visited. Let him think his terms for this "project" had scared her away, and that she was happily engaged to a Mr. Fox. That part had been particularly fun to come up with, since enough people had seen them dancing and going upstairs together.

The sun began to rise and he had a little degenerate to hunt. The fox did, indeed, want his rabbit.

It was easy enough to spot the dune she'd climbed over. She left enough of a trail. Obviously she was more concerned about distance than covering her tracks.

He saw where she'd crouched behind a boulder, probably tired. He also crouched, getting the feel of the trail. There was a broken yucca stem with a couple of fruit on the ground. In the darkness, she could have easily tripped on it. Yes, he was on the right track.

It didn't take him long to see her footprints join with someone else's. He also found one of her shoes, discarded. Vulpes clenched his jaw in rage. Someone had taken her. Taken _his_ property. No, he quickly reminded himself, Legion property.

A still smoldering fire pit was his next clue. Someone had put out the fire with water, but didn't have enough. Raiders, perhaps? There were a few empty whiskey bottles around the camp, and some bones with chew marks on them. How many? No more than five, he thought.

There was a dead tree with a skinny trunk just on the edge of this degenerate camp. He could see wear marks on it, and some dried bark had fallen onto the ground. This was where they'd tied Eve up. The fallen bark means she had struggled to get free. The trail now would be much easier to follow now that he knew he was looking for a group.

Eve's tracks were obvious because she'd been fighting in the beginning. There were spots where she'd fallen, he was sure of it. One such spot and she didn't get up, not on her own. So she fought enough that they had to carry her, he mused. Good rabbit. In a way, he was proud of her strength. To take down a member of the Legion, no matter how green he was, was no easy task. They'd underestimated her. Vulpes Inculta would not make that mistake.

Eve:

Hector carried me slumped over his shoulder like an old coat in the heat. No amount of hitting his back or screaming seemed to faze him. In fact it made them all laugh. They did stick a rag in my mouth and tied it behind my head to shut me up, though.

"We're here, Honey," Hector announced insufferably.

I tried to curse at him through my covered mouth but it was muffled. Hector got the gist and laughed, swatting my backside. He set me down and held me up as my legs were too tired to stand right away. "Stay with her," he told his gang of ruffians. "I gotta go tell the boss."

We were in the middle of an abandoned farm. The was a large barn with most of its roof caved in, but the farmhouse beside it looked sturdy enough. Hector walked up creaking steps to go inside while we waited on the porch.

Whatever was going on between him and his boss, it sounded like he wasn't happy with Hector. There was a thud, then the door opened with Hector holding his now swollen cheek. He wasn't smiling anymore. He grabbed me roughly from his friends and pushed me inside. His boss was sitting wide legged on a dusty couch. This guy was older, with black and grey streaked hair. He had a large mustache and stubble like he hadn't shaved in a few days.

"I fucked up, Eli, I fucked up real bad I know. But I found this for you." He pushed me roughly and I fell to my knees before this Eli.

"Let's see here," Eli said gently, grabbing me roughly by the chin. "She's a real looker. How did someone as stupid as you find this?"

While Hector explained his good fortune, I was looking for a weapon. Fat lot of good it would do me with my hands tied.

Eli pulled down the rag from my mouth. "What's your name, pretty girl?"

I spat at him. He slapped me, but not hard. He wiped my saliva from his face and I was surprised to see him grinning with a mouthful of tobacco-stained teeth. "Oh, I like you. Yes, I do. Take her up to my room," he ordered Hector, pulling the dirty cloth back over my mouth.

I struggled all the way up the stairs, but Hector just threw me on a bed and left, locking the door.

A few minutes later Eli entered, whistling a cheerful tune. "That Hector, now he's a real fucking idiot, just so you know, but if you treat me right I just might forgive him." He took his belt off and shrugged his stained white button-up shirt on the floor. He was a big man, but had a belly from too much alcohol consumption. His chest was hairy and greying like his scalp. "Now, if you're a good girl, I'll be nice to you, I promise. But if you're a bad girl…" he shook the belt in his hand casually. "Well, bad girls get spanked."

He walked towards me grinning sadistically and I inched as far back as I could until my back was against the headboard. Eli untied the cloth in my mouth from the back of my head and discarded it beside the bed. "You got all your teeth, girl?" He asked, putting his thumb on my bottom lip. I snapped my teeth at him, but he was too fast. He laughed. "Good, I like it when they fight." He flipped me onto my stomach and latched my wrists to the iron headboard.

"Let me go, you fucking cretin!" I screamed.

"Now, I don't know what that means, but it sure don't sound like a nice word." His meaty hand caressed my back down to my butt. I could feel the air hit me as he lifted my dress up to my waist. "Mmm, now that is a fine ass." He gave it a slight smack with the belt. I moved onto my knees trying to get away. He pushed my head down into the pillow, almost suffocating me. I felt the belt hit my rump again and I cried out in pain. "Once I'm done beating your ass, I'm gonna fuck you in it." He was breathless, clearly enjoying this. My screams turned to whimpers and I bit down on the pillow to keep from crying too loudly. I didn't want to give him the satisfaction. He was kneeling behind me and the hitting stopped. I moaned in a panic as I heard his zipper come undone.

I heard the door of the room open. "For fuck's sake! I told you fuckers not to distur-" He was cut off with a gargle. Vast amounts of warm liquid spilled on my legs and a bit on my bare thighs.

"Isn't this a pleasant sight." That low voice, that purr.

No! No, no, no! Not him, anyone but him! A weight was lifted from the bed as Mr. Fox pushed Eli's dead body to the floor.

"I'll admit I was very disappointed in you, Eve," Mr. Fox said casually. "But seeing you like this...it almost makes up for the betrayal."

"Betrayal? You kidnapped me, you sadist!" I pulled against the headboard frantically. He chuckled and I heard his footsteps cross to the other side of the room. I jumped when a cold cloth began wiping what I now knew was Eli's blood from my legs. I turned my head and I could see the machete sticking out of his throat. His eyes were still open, lifeless and glazed over from death.

"Because you are meant for a greater purpose than selling yourself to the NCR," Mr. Fox replied sternly. "That Caesar wants you personally is a great honour."

"What are you even talking about?"

He rinsed the cloth and began working on my other leg. "I cannot say, but when Nuntius told Caesar of how you saved him, I was sent to find you and bring you to him personally."

"Did someone shoot Caesar in the head?" I asked sarcastically. I was rewarded with a light swat to my thigh.

"No one would dare," he said simply. He came to my side and unleashed my wrists from the post. I turned and sat on the edge of the bed, then tried to kick him in the knee. Mr. Fox jumped back out of reach, and I scrambled to my feet. I was pushed against the wall, his strong forearm against my neck. He just barely cut the supply of air to my lungs. I wheezed in and out as I struggled for oxygen. His eyes were intense, there was a fiery rage there, yet he remained composed. He was dressed in some sort of Legion armour, but different from the ones I'd seen at the wagon. He had some sort of fur hood that was not on his head but settled around his shoulders. Black goggles were around his neck like a collar.

"P...Ple...ase…" I choked out. He released his forearm but trapped me by putting his hands on either side of my head.

"You are strong, for a degenerate woman," he stated casually. "I am stronger. And I am not such a fool as to fall for your tricks."

"I hate you," I raged.

"You do," he agreed. "But only a few nights ago you did not hate me so much. In fact, I think you really quite enjoyed me."

Blushing, I looked down. I was furious and speechless. What could I say to that? He pushed himself closer. I looked up at his chiseled face. He surprised me by running his thumb over my bottom lip.

"Now that we are reaquainted, I suppose I should properly introduce myself. My name is Vulpes Inculta."

Vulpes:

This little degenerate, she surprised him. How he reacted to her surprised himself. He hadn't meant to touch her so intimately, but she was so angry and passionate, how could he not? It was a reward in itself to see the anger in her eyes. It took all of his strength to push himself away from her. She was shaking all over, and out of breath. Her lips were red so red and plump that he wanted to bite them.

"Come," he said simply. "Do not make me tie you up. If you escape, I will simply find you again. This time, I might not save you. Maybe I will watch instead and take you myself after."

"Bastardis!" She fumed. He was pleased at her Latin. She would make a great slave for Caesar. Pulling his machete from Eli's neck, he wiped it to add yet more blood to the bed.

Eve:

The farmhouse was painted with blood. Every single man was dead. I was pleased to see Hector's mouth open in surprise, blood trickling from his lips.

"I would have had these men crucified, had I the time," Vulpes said wistfully. "I gave them a far quicker death than they deserved."

"You're a monster." And I was ashamed at the happiness I had felt when upon seeing Hector. Maybe he deserved this, I couldn't deny it, but Vulpes talked about death like an afterthought and it chilled me to the bone.

Vulpes stopped and began untying the laces on a pair of boots that this corpse no longer needed. "Here," he handed them to me. I had lost my other shoe in the bedroom, not that it mattered. I laced them up. They were too big, but now that it was day time, they'd protect my bare feet from the heat of the sand.

We exited the farmhouse and Vulpes put his goggles on around his eyes. He pulled up his hood, which was the skinned head of a dog. Fitting.

My rump was sore and stinging from Eli's belt and I was tired of fighting. Not to say I was giving up, but I was done for now. What was the use? Vulpes _would_ find me again, I was sure of it. We made our way back to the wagon in good time, midday I estimated. The sun was high in the air, shining down on us brutally. I was sweaty and tired and thirsty.

Now instead of a disconnect towards me, I felt the Legion soldiers' animosity. I imagine they were ashamed of my escape, something that made me feel smug until I saw the man I'd escaped from. He was dead, his throat slit. I swallowed thickly. This was Legion justice, even with each other.

Vulpes helped me into the wagon and I sat painfully. He removed my boots and locked the chains around my ankles again. A bottle of water was tossed in before he closed the flap. The wagon started moving.

 _I am the Alpha and the Omega, I am the Beginning and the End_ I chanted to myself, gathering comfort as I imagined my father saying it to me, like he did every night before bed.


	5. Rabbits in Cages

Cottonwood Cove; they'd made it without hassle, though Vulpes had made sure he had scouts ahead and behind them. He didn't want anymore surprises. He'd chosen a longer route because he knew it would be the least inhabited. Running into NCR forces at this point would be...regrettable. They were lucky.

He checked on Eve throughout the trip. She'd been complacent and quiet, which suited him. Though he admired her fire, he didn't want to deal with it at this point.

"Ave Vulpes Inculta," a voice called out from the gates.

"Ave, Centurion Aurellius, true to Caesar." He hit his chest with his fist. The gate opened and led his contubernium inside. It felt good to be back in Legion territory. It would feel better still to be in what was known as simply "The Fort", their largest camp up the river. He was eager to deliver Eve to Caesar, and curious to see what he wanted with her. He noticed that Eve had stuck her head out of the wagon's entrance, looking around. Her eyes lingered on the slave pen where several disheveled and dirty people were being kept. She looked horrified, and so she should be. She should know the full power of Caesar's Legion and how they operated. The weak were merely cattle to be used as labour until they died and they should feel honoured for it.

Vulpes himself had been nothing but a child when his tribe was decimated by Legate Lanius himself. The Legate paired off the boys and made them fight one another to the death. The ones who survived, as Vulpes did, joined the Legion. Vulpes regretted nothing. What would he have become, but some uneducated tribal with no future and no discipline? Now he was the head of Caesar's Frumentarii, an honour bestowed upon him by the leader himself.

If Eve was needed for what Vulpes suspected, that his imperator was ill, then he hoped that she would make herself into a good Legion slave. Caesar himself had ordered her to be brought to him healthy and unharmed. She didn't know the honour of this request.

"What have you here, Vulpes?" Aurellius asked, coming to inspect the wagon. "A wagon for a _woman slave_?" He gave Vulpes a surprised look.

"Imperator Caesar has asked me to fetch this woman for him unharmed, and so I have," he replied boredly. He knew Aurellius wanted to ask more questions, but wisely he only nodded. If Caesar wanted him to know his plans, he would tell him.

"Come, woman," Vulpes ordered Eve. She stumbled from the wagon and shielded her eyes from the light. She looked curiously at Aurellius, who was a Centurion. She would not know the awe she should feel just by being in his presence. Not very many Legion soldiers survived long enough to become one. Vulpes grabbed her arm and took her to the slave pen. Canyon Runner, the slave master, opened the gate.

"Wait!" Eve cried out as Vulpes shoved her inside. "What's going to happen to me?" The gate was closed and locked. Eve slammed against it a few times with her hands.

"Nolite nocere ei," Vulpes told Canyon Runner, who nodded and hit his chest with his fist in a salute. Do not harm her, Vulpes had said and walked off into the office with Aurellius.

Eve.

I hit the fence a few more times for good measure, envisioning it was Vulpes' back.

"Don't do that," a woman called out softly. I turned to look at her. Her age was hard to tell because of how haggard she was. Her hair was a bit grey, but it was also covered in dirt, as was the rest of her. "They'll punish you if you make too much noise."

With my ankles still shackled, I walked over to her and the two children at her side. "Who are you?"

"I'm Myrna Weathers. These are my children, Sammy and Kenny." The two kids looked absolutely pitiful and it broke my heart. Their faces were only clean where the tears had run down them. They clung to their mother.

"How did you get here?" I asked. Myrna just shook her head sadly. I understood. It was too painful to talk about.

Sammy hiccoughed and sobbed. I crouched down to her level. "Sammy? Is that short for Samantha?" I asked her gently. She nodded. "That's such a beautiful name. My name is Eve, I'm a doctor all the way from the Capitol Wasteland. Do you know that place?" Sammy shook her head, but was interested. I sat down and the two kids joined me. "Do you want to hear the story about the Super Mutant named Fawkes?"

"You know a Super Mutant? I don't believe it" Kenny scoffed, but he was interested.

"Yes, he was my friend. He still is, I guess, but I haven't seen him in a long time." I swallowed thickly.

"Because the boogeymen stoleded you?" Sammy asked innocently. She gestured to the Legionaries walking around.

"Ah, no, we parted ways before that. Let me tell you the story about how I met him." And I did, though I made Vault 87 sound way less scary than how it actually was. I spun the tale of the noble, intelligent Super Mutant, which was the truth, and how we had been best friends. I suppose that was kind of true too. "And then, to get the G.E.C.K, the magical device that makes water drinkable, I had to enter a room FULL of radiation! But Fawkes said," and here I lowered my voice and growled, "'let me go in for you! Radiation is nothing to me!'"

"Did he make it?" Kenny asked. His chin was jutting forward on his hands and his eyes were shining. Mrs. Weathers smiled sadly at me, I suppose happy that her children's minds were taken off the horror, if only for a few minutes.

"I don't know. What do you think?" I asked Sammy and Kenny.

"I think he did it!" Sammy enthused. She was bouncing up and down. "I think Fawkes gots the heck."

"He sure did, Sammy! And he was completely fine! He handed it to me. I had helped him escape the vault, and he had helped me too."

I told them a few other G-rated stories about me and Fawkes. They liked how Fawkes would sneak up to raiders and scared them so bad they'd just drop their weapons and run. That did happen once, and it was pretty funny. Fawkes had laughed harder than I'd ever seen. It was quite a sight.

"Will Fawkes come get us?" Sammy asked hopefully. I could see Myrna's face fall.

"That's enough stories for today," she said. "Thank you Eve."

They walked away, but Sammy stumbled and fell. I ran over to her. "What happened?" I asked quickly, checking her vitals. Her heart rate was too quick and she was fevered. I pinched the fatty skin of her forearm and it stayed in a lump. "She's dehydrated."

I ran over to the gate. "Hey you!" I called to the guard. He ignored me. "This girl needs water!"

He still ignored me. No, I would not let her die like this. What could I do? I looked around but there was nothing but a few sad people. It disgusted me how everyone ignored Sammy. They'd already been broken. I noticed a bit of sharp wire from where the gate's chainlink had come undone. I loosened it some more and held the point to my neck. "If you don't get me a bottle of water, I'm going to stab myself in the jugular. Have you ever seen how fast someone can bleed out? What will you tell Caesar? That I died over a bottle of water?"

The slave master glared at me, but I could see the indecision in his eyes. He motioned to a soldier who nodded, ran off, and came back with a large canteen. The slave master threw it over the fence. I noticed an enslaved man, gaunt and malnourished, hurrying towards it.

"Back off!" I yelled at him. He looked at me hatefully and kept going. I charged at him as best I could with my feet chained, knocking him easily to the ground. He was too weak to fight me, and I hadn't been lacking in food or water like he was. I scooped up the canteen and ran to Sammy.

"Here, sweetheart." I tipped her head back and slowly poured some water in her mouth. "Just a bit now, just one drop at a time, okay?" I hoped it wasn't too late for just water to help her now. In a best case scenario, I'd have her on IV fluids to replenish all the electrolytes. "Let's move her to the shade," I suggested. The side of the building the slave pen was attached to would hopefully cool her down. I gave the canteen to Kenny. He was older, but still a child.

Mrs. Weathers shook her head when I offered it to her next. "Better that it's for the children," she said softly.

We sat quietly for the rest of our time, the children each slowly sipping the canteen until it was empty. It was as empty as I felt inside. In my head, it was all Vulpes' fault and I hated him more than anything now. I hated him more than Colonel Autumn, who had, in my eyes, killed my father.


	6. Marked Rabbit

_Author's Note: I forgot to upload this on Friday! Oops! Please enjoy._

Vulpes and Aurellius sat amicably in the office discussing the latest Legion news.

"Nipton still has the NCR dogs crying with their tails between their legs," Aurellius said casually. "That was a cruel stroke of brilliance, old friend."

"Yes," Vulpes agreed, nodding. "It broke them well, I've heard. Nuntius spread the news of the massacre quickly and far." He'd met Nuntius in Nipton. The man with the scarred head had looked around with a sadistic interest and merely told Vulpes that he appreciated the Legion's sense of justice. At the time, Vulpes had been slightly amused by the man, so much so he reported him to Caesar. Caesar, who seemed to have a knack for finding men who would be easy to use, had Vulpes recruit Nuntius. Nuntius played the part well, though Vulpes knew it was just an act.

"You have a gift for breaking the spirit of the profligates. I think this war will be just as much fought by your frumentarii, as by the Legate."

"Has Legate Lanius arrived from the Utah yet?" Vulpes inquired. He respected the Legate for what he was: a very sharp and powerful weapon. The Legate was brutal, however, and while his troops rightly feared him, they did not necessarily respect him. He was like Nuntius, in a way; not a believer in the Legion, but at least Lanius was loyal to Caesar.

"Not yet. Soon, I hope."

"Hmm."

They chatted a bit more, and soon the news came that the ferry from The Fort had finally arrived. Good, Vulpes thought, the sooner he got Eve to Caesar, the better.

He and Aurellius walked out to greet the ferry.

"Ave, Centurion Aurellius, Vulpes Inculta," Lucullus, the Ferryman called, docking the small boat.

"Ave, Lucullus. I will need you to take myself and an important guest to The Fort immediately," Vulpes commanded.

"Ita vero, Vulpes Inculta." Lucullus put his fist to his chest. "Allow us a moment to unload these supplies and we will be on our way."

"Be quick, then."

Vulpes walked over to the slave pen. He panicked when he could not see Eve and wondered, for a short moment, if she'd escaped somehow. Ah, but there she was, sitting in between two slave children.

"Is all well?" he asked Canyon Runner, who gritted his teeth.

"The sooner she is gone, domine, the better," he replied tersely. Vulpes simply raised an eyebrow and Canyon Runner continued, "one of the slaves fainted and this profligate _woman_ decided to threaten to hurt herself if she didn't get water. Knowing that she is of the utmost importance to Caesar, I gave them a canteen."

"Yes, she is spirited. You did the right thing." He thought for a moment. He knew Eve's kind, she was, as they say, a bleeding heart. If Caesar needed her for what Vulpes suspected, then the Legion would need her loyalty. He saw how she was disgusted by the slaves. She didn't yet understand how the Legion functioned. Perhaps she would never understand. He needed a show of...goodwill, as it were. "Bring me another canteen," he ordered. Canyon Runner gave him a confused look, but gestured to his subordinate who ran off.

Vulpes opened the gate and the subordinate came with the canteen. "Eve," he called. "Come here." She looked up at him, saw the canteen, and walked over. "For the children," he said simply. She looked at him quizzically, then took it and nearly ran back to the other slaves. He watched as she hugged them, then spoke to the woman he assumed was their mother. The woman smiled and embraced her back. Eve was smiling as she walked to the gate.

"We are departing to The Fort soon."

Eve.

"Why is this woman so important, domine?" I overheard the ferryman ask Vulpes. "Woman are only good for breeding and birthing."

"Because it is the will of Caesar," Vulpes stated simply, yet with a dangerous undertone that wasn't lost on either the ferryman or me. Misogynistic jerk, I thought to myself, glaring at his back. Vulpes saw me and one side of his mouth lifted in amusement, but was quickly gone.

"Of course, I meant no disrespect." The ferryman concentrated less on talking and more on driving the small boat.

I was sitting on a soft duffel bag near the middle of the boat. My feet were now unshackled. Vulpes sat down near the railing, stretching his long, strong legs out. His feet were nearly touching mine. "Why?" I asked him. He looked at me and waited for me to continue, even though I knew he knew damn well what I was referring to. "Why the water?"

"The Legion is hard for your kind to understand. You weren't created by it, nor were you born into it. A slave has value, children especially because they will become strong like the rest of us."

I simply snorted and shook my head.

Vulpes sighed and rested his hands on his belly. "The Legion is like a machine with many parts, and sometimes the lowest parts are worked the hardest. But the machine cannot work without these parts."

"That is the dumbest metaphor I've ever heard. Those are human beings! With families and thoughts and emotions! They're not...they're not cogs and gears."

"Then I don't want you to think of me as cruel, then," he admitted. I noticed he was looking out at the water, and was avoiding eye contact.

"What do you care what I think of you?" Now I was confused. And when he finally looked at me, an unwelcome fire lit up in my stomach.

"I care because what you think of me reflects on how you will think of Caesar. That's why."

"Okay." This was a strange turn of events. "Tell me about Caesar, what is he like?"

"What can I say about him? He has created a civilisation that values virtues such as loyalty, discipline, and justice, as cruel as some see it. Caesar himself, he has a towering intellect, and a head for strategy like no other before him."

"And you? I noticed the others back there deferred to you. Why is that?"

"I am the greatest of Caesar's Frumentarii. We are soldiers of a different stripe, capable in battle, but infiltrators and agents as well." He spoke plainly, I noticed, with no pride in his voice, just fact.

"So spies?"

He smiled slightly. "In other words, yes."

I sighed. "I guess I was an easy mark to fool." It was such a cliche, taking advantage of a sad woman's circumstance, something I read about in books and scoffed at. Yet, how easily I let it happen to me. I was supposed to be smart, and I was when it came to science, just not with people.

"You were," he agreed. "It was hardly a challenge to find you. Though you did take me by surprise, which is rare." I looked at him curiously. "You disabled a Legion scout, low on the hierarchy, yes, yet still he had been training since childhood to fight and you humiliated him. You would have made an excellent Frumentarius, I think."

"If I were a man," I retorted. He only smiled insufferably and shrugged.

"Ah, before I forget." Vulpes pulled a medallion on a gold chain from a satchel at his hip. "You must wear this at all times in the camp. _All_ times," he stressed.

"What is it?" I took it from him and turned it over in my palm. One one side was a bull in mid kick, the other side was smooth. I put it around my neck and it settled comfortably between my breasts.

"It is the Mark of Caesar, bestowed upon his most valued guests. If you are wearing it, no harm can come to you from anyone in the Legion."

"Great." Now I was even more confused. Was I a slave like the people in Cottonwood Cove? Or a guest? I didn't feel like much of a guest. If Caesar was interested in Project Purity, could I, in good conscience, do this for him? I didn't think I could. Would I be forced, like my father, to make the ultimate sacrifice to keep what I knew from falling into the wrong hands? I shivered at the thought.

 _I am the Alpha and the Omega._


	7. Rabbit and the Bull

_Author's Note: Thank you all so much for reading! Though there aren't many comments and reviews, I'm touched by the traffic this work of mine has generated. Also, just a quick note that I don't have a beta reader, so if there are typos/mistakes, I'm sorry!_

When they arrived an hour later at The Fort, Vulpes made sure to remind her to be mindful around Caesar. "He does not tolerate disrespect."

Eve just shrugged and nodded slightly. She'd been quiet for most of the trip after their little talk. He supposed she had a lot to think about.

As did he. He had big plans for New Vegas. He'd formulated a plan to destroy the monorail, which would deal a huge blow to the NCR. Nuntius would be up to that task, with his love of havoc and explosives. Picus, his spy placed in the NCR, had done well by giving them the information he'd needed. There was also the little problem with Mr. House, the mysterious entity who lived in his own fortified hotel turned mausoleum. He had the Omertas on his side, and was now sending agents to woo the Great Khans to the west.

Plans upon plans upon plans.

He guided Eve up the hill towards Caesar's tent. She took it all in without a word, though he could easily enough guess what she thought of it. Despite the hustle and bustle of slaves and soldiers walking about, it was orderly. Men sparred in the arena, blacksmiths sharpened machete blades, slaves were cooking and bringing goods from one part of the camp to the next. It was comfortable and familiar to Vulpes.

Outside of the tent, he greeted the Praetorian guards and pointed to the mark hanging from Eve's neck. They gestured for them to enter.

"Ah, Vulpes," Caesar greeted from his throne as they walked past the small kitchen and dining area towards him. Vulpes saluted in the Legion way and kneeled. "I see you have a guest."

Vulpes rose and gestured for Eve to stand beside him. "Yes, Imperator. This is the woman Nuntius told you about."

"Hmmm." Caesar turned to Lucius beside him. "Bring Nuntius to me." As Lucius left, Caesar studied Eve for a few moments, she did the same, her chin tilted up with defiance. After a moment, he said to her, "while we wait, why don't you get something to eat and drink. I must speak with Vulpes." He saved her away easily. Vulpes saw Eve's jaw clench, but she haughtily turned around and pushed her way past the guards.

"Now, tell me about her."

So Vulpes did. He explained their meeting, but left out that he had seduced her. He told him what little he knew about Project Purity, but Caesar waved his hands with disinterest. Vulpes then brought in the belongings he'd had taken from her room at The Tops. Inside one of the duffle bags Eve had just previously been sitting on were her clothes, her Pip-Boy, and her surgical bag along with medications which would normally be banned.

"A fucking Pip-Boy, what are they just giving these to everyone?" Caesar remarked. Nuntius had one he'd gotten from the doctor in Goodsprings.

"Eve was born in a vault. I could not get it to work," Vulpes admitted. He'd tried, but was not very technological.

Caesar turned it over. "Clever. She's rigged it with a code." He tossed it back to Vulpes, who easily caught it. "Put it away for now."

"She will need to be watched carefully," Vulpes added cautiously. He didn't want to tell Caesar about what happened at the wagon, but he'd have to. It would look bad if it came back to him in the form of a rumour. "She managed to escape by tricking a scout." He gave Caesar the full story, but left out where she'd ended up. As far as Vulpes was concerned, that would remain their secret.

Caesar was annoyed. "A woman. What a fucking joke. She better not try that here."

"I have warned her, Imperator."

"Good."

"Also, if I may give you some advice," Vulpes started and continued with Caesar's nod. "Eve is...caring, compassionate in her dealings with people. I am...concerned that her view of the Legion has been skewed by being around profligates. She does not understand our ways. I fear that she will be...less than willing to help."

Caesar's eyes slanted as he processed this. "What do you suggest?"

"Threatening her won't help, and I don't think a harsh hand is the way to go. Gaining her loyalty would be better. She needs to be accommodated, if only for a bit."

Lucius returned with a practically salivating Nuntius in tow.

"Where is she?" Nuntius asked, looking around. Caesar gestured for the praetorians to bring Eve in. Vulpes did not like how Nuntius stared at her with a deranged look in his eye.

Eve had a curious reaction. She stared at Nuntius like he was a ghost. She got even paler, if that were possible. "You…" she whispered and stepped back, but the praetorians prevented her from leaving.

"Is this her, then?" Caesar asked boredly.

"Yes," Nuntius replied gleefully. "She is the one who...saved me, who gave me new life." He turned to her. "I saw you, you know, in...my dreams. They tried to convince me...that the other doctor saved me, but I knew it...was you."

Vulpes could see Caesar's annoyance. "That's great," he said wryly. "Now everyone out. Except you, Vulpes, and you, Lucius." Vulpes was surprised that he was invited to stay. Nuntius looked like he wanted to argue, but one look from Lucius and he backed out slowly, looking enraged. Yes, he was going to be a problem, Vulpes thought.

Eve

I was surprised when Caesar said he needed my medical expertise after everyone had left. The man, Lucius, looked pained. Vulpes only nodded, as though having a question finally answered.

"I'm sure you have doctors," I said simply.

"Not like you, I'm told. How exactly did you take out two bullets from Six's brain without killing him?"

"With my very intelligent _female_ brain." Vulpes gave me a warning look. "Are you sick?" I asked curiously.

"All right, let's state the obvious. There's something wrong with me," Caesar admitted simply. I saw Vulpes' eyes widen with shock. "Oh don't look so surprised. You're smarter than that."

"What are your symptoms?" I couldn't help it, I was in full doctor mode, dictator be damned.

"The headaches started a couple months ago. They weren't too bad at first... but now they come frequently and they're...debilitating, to put it mildly."

"Any numbness in your arms or legs?"

"For the past two weeks, my left leg has been dragging. It's stiffer, hard to move." He turned to Lucius. "And you've seen me blank out." Back to me. "Lucius says I stare into space, blink a few times, then keep talking like nothing happened. So what's the diagnosis?"

I compartmentalised all his symptoms in my head and thought for a moment. "Could be a degenerative disease, but it sounds like a brain tumour. I'd have to do some tests to be sure."

Vulpes exhaled softly beside me. Lucius looked pained like I'd just told _him_ he had a brain tumour. Caesar was, interestingly enough, unmoved. "There's an Auto-Doc in the back, but it's broken. It needs a new diagnostic scanning module, which are very hard to come by, apparently," he stated with a derisive humour.

"Can I see it?"

Caesar nodded and all four of us walked into the back room of the tent. This must be Caesar's personal room. It was an office and a bedroom all in one. I had seen pictures in old books about Roman history, and this looked like the best interpretation one could make in the wasteland. It was obviously a man's space, with lots of wood and bold reds.

The Auto-Doc was standing by the bed. it was easy to see the space where the module would fit. "If I had my Pip-Boy, I could bypass this easily and use it to act like the scanner." I wasn't unhappy to announce this. I didn't want to help him if I was perfectly honest with myself. Caesar's smirk had me wary, and when Vulpes came back with my Pip-Boy I nearly shrieked.

"Where did you get this?" I wrenched it out of his hands and put it securely back on my wrist. I hid my hand while I inputted the code. Its boot up sequence started with a familiar hum. It wasn't just a tool to me; it was filled with the saved holo-recordings my father had made, all my research, and all the books I'd downloaded from the Arlington Library in the Capitol.

"I had it taken from your room at The Tops," Vulpes told me casually. I glared at him. "You didn't need it until now."

"We also have your medical bag as well, and your other personal items," Caesar added. "You can have it all, as well as a room in this tent all to yourself." He watched me carefully. Was this a test? I didn't know. Caesar had very intense dark blue eyes, you could practically see his brain working from behind them.

After some thought, I simply said "No."

Vulpes tensed beside me and Lucius looked ready to kill me at a moment's notice. Caesar, however, just nodded thoughtfully. "Leave us," he commanded. "Now." It was obvious Lucius had a huge problem with this, but the tone of Caesar's voice left little room for argument.

Caesar went to a large, opulent, wooden desk in the corner of his room, beyond the Auto-Doc. He sat behind it and motioned for me to join him. I hesitantly made my way over and sat across. Caesar's fingers were tented together, deep in thought.

He took his time before speaking, and it took a lot of effort to pretend to be relaxed when I was, in all honesty, terrified.

"Vulpes told me a bit about your Project Purity. What he could understand, anyway," Caesar smiled ruefully. "It sounds very complicated."

"That is one way of putting it."

"Clean water for the whole Mojave Wasteland, is it possible?"

"Yes. But it's not just about clean water, the Colorado River is clean enough, it's about growth. With the power of the Dam, it wouldn't be difficult to set up something similar, or better than what we have in the Capitol. Then it would just be a matter of laying piping to the smaller settlements. Think of looking outside and seeing green instead of dust."

"Hmm. You'd need a, what was it called? G.E.C.K?"

"If one exists in these parts, yes. I wasn't able to complete my research."

"Any knowledge of a G.E.C.K would probably be found with Mr. House. That bastard seems to know everything." I only could shrug. I'd heard of Mr. House, who hadn't? But the guy was mysterious and impossible to meet. I'd tried and was blocked by his imposing Securitrons. "But that's a long term plan. Why don't we talk about the now?"

"I don't see how there's much to discuss."

"Primum non nocere."

Oh, of course he was going to throw do no harm in my face. "Primum non nocere might be a more suitable motto for you."

"Ah, but I'm not a doctor, I never took that oath. You only see the harm of what I've done, but you haven't experienced the peace I've given to Arizona. The NCR is corrupt, it deals with a old world ideals that caused this whole fucking mess to begin with. Did you know that the NCR's most united and peaceful decades were under President Tandi? Did you know her Presidency lasted 52 years? And that her father, Aradesh, was the Republic's first President? Does that sound like democracy to you, or a hereditary dictatorship?"

"It sounds like you think that I care about the NCR. I don't. They're concerned only for themselves, just like the Legion."

"But will they offer you this: you save me, and I will give you Hoover Dam when I defeat the NCR. You can give the Mojave, all of it, Project Purity."

" _If_ you defeat the NCR."

" _When_ ," Caesar said sternly, and I knew not to push him on this. "There's something else," he added casually. "Vulpes Inculta mentioned you'd grown...attached...to a family of slaves in Cottonwood Cove." He gave me a pointed look.

How dare he! I gritted my teeth. "You'd kill an innocent family just to get me to help you? You're a real piece of work, you know that?"

He laughed loudly, with genuine amusement. "Look at how your bias clouds your mind! No, I will free them. I'll send them back to whatever NCR shit hole they came from. A goodwill gesture, if you will. This is what I will do for you if you simply make a diagnosis. For now, those slaves are getting water and food and have been moved into an indoor cell, away from the heat. That little girl knows that her fortune is due to you, Eve." I had the feeling that if their good fortune were to stop, Caesar would make sure they knew it was because of her too.

"All I have to do is diagnose you?"

"That's all."

The diagnosis didn't happen just then, because at that moment Caesar had one of his crippling migraines. I ran and got my medical bag. Lucius followed me inside. Where Vulpes was, I didn't know.

I picked up a syringe of med-x, but Lucius held my arm back. "Imperator," he asked quietly, "do you need something for the pain?"

"Fuck! No, just...get the fuck out." Caesar was his side in bed, clutching his head in agony.

If he didn't want the med-x then I'd have to respect that. I'll be the first to admit that it was satisfying to see him in pain.

Lucius escorted me outside his room.

"What should I do?" I whispered.

He shook his head. "Better to just come back. They usually last no more than an hour. You can stay here, or leave the tent, but you will not be allowed to leave the compound just yet."

"Lucius, right?" I asked. He seemed surprised at my candor, perhaps the women in his life wouldn't ask such a bold question. He nodded. "What do you do around here?"

"I am the leader of Caesar's praetorian guard. We stop anyone from threatening him." His brown eyes gave me a pointed look. Message received.

"Is there a place where I can get cleaned up?" I'd been traveling for a few days straight. I'd hoped Vulpes had gotten all my clothing from The Tops.

"Hmm, your tent is to the left. As far as I know all your belongings are in there. I'll have someone bring you hot water for a bath." He gestured to on open flap. Caesar did indeed want me close. His own personal slave doctor.

The room in the tent wasn't big, it was smaller than my room at The Tops, that was for sure. But it wasn't uncomfortable, and the ceiling was high. There was a twin bed covered in a few pillows and furs, a small wooden desk with a chair, a large basin which I assumed was for bathing. It wasn't big, I'd have to sit with my knees up, but it'd work just fine. Lucius was right, there was a duffel bag in the corner of the room. I rushed over and opened them, feeling relief and nostalgia.

I pulled out my blue vault suit with "101" sewed in leather on the back. Inhaling, I imagined the smell of my father and our small apartment in the vault. He always smelled so clean, like the homemade soap Beatrice used to make, which Dad took as thanks from her instead of her offerings to read his fortune. "No harm in it," he'd mused, "but we make our own fortune."

Tears were threatening to spill, so I put it down. Crying wasn't going to help, I scolded myself.

Even though the Legion had oh so kindly given me a small dresser, I wasn't going to use it. I wasn't going to stay long, no matter what.

I went through the old holotapes I'd downloaded on my Pip-Boy over the years. There the one for my 15th birthday of Amata singing Happy Birthday to me. The holotape Dad left for me when he escaped from the vault that I'd found on Jonas' body was in here too, I'd listened to his last statement over and over and over on my journey until I'd found him again, "Goodbye, I love you."

Someone politely cleared their throat behind me and spun around. A tall black woman had a bucket of water and had her eyes averted to the floor. She was wearing a shapeless, brown canvas dress with a red x on the front.

"I have your water, domina," she said quietly.

"Oh, right, thank you." I went to take the bucket from her, but she held it fast to her body.

"Domina, please, I will pour your bath for you." She hurried over and poured the first bucket in. I noticed there were more buckets outside the tent. When she'd put in about five of them, I motioned for her to stop.

"That's more than enough. Thank you so much. What's your name?"

"Siri, domina," she said matter-of-factly.

"What does 'domina' mean?"

"Mistress."

"That's no good. Please call me Eve." I noticed she wasn't leaving, so I was standing there awkwardly, wondering what she was waiting for.

"I cannot, domina. Would you like help washing?"

"Despite common belief," I said, gesturing to my dirty, smelly, travel-worn body, "I have been bathing myself since I was five."

Siri smiled, a quick, furtive smile that disappeared as quickly as it came. "I will bid you 'vale', domina. Before I go, I am meant to tell you that I am the resident healer here. If you have free time, you are more than welcome to visit me."

I was surprised. A woman healer? "I'd be happy to. I'm sure we can learn a lot from each other."

After Siri left, I practically fell into the bath. It was near scalding, and I felt like I was washing every single bad thing away, as well as the dirt. The soap I'd been given was simple and unscented, the wash cloth scratchy, but it still felt great. I let my hair out and gave it a good scrubbing.

I closed my eyes and leaned my neck back against the cold basin. I knew I was stuck here, at least until diagnosing Caesar and freeing the Weathers family from slavery. If he stuck to his promise, I thought. Who knew if he really would? He had me between a rock and a hard place and there was nothing I could do.

I'd been daydreaming, so I jumped when I heard someone chuckle. Some of the water splashed out the sides of the basin as I quickly sat up. My knees were bent so at least I wasn't completely exposed, but I was vulnerable.

Nuntius.

My heart jumped to my throat. He was sitting on his haunches, watching me like a deathclaw stalking its next meal. I hated that I couldn't speak. This man, he was the one thing that terrified me the most. Terror and guilt that I'd somehow unleashed this monster on the Mojave.

"Eve," he breathed. "I was hoping we...could talk." He stayed where he was, eerily still. His dark auburn hair was shaved practically to the skull, showing off the gnarly scar on his temple where I'd removed the two bullets I wish now had killed him. He smiled and showed a slight gap in his two front teeth.

"We have nothing to talk about," I said quickly. "Get out." I looked for the towel Siri had placed next to the small basin, but it was gone, now sitting beside Nuntius.

"I've waited... so long for this moment, Eve. You have no idea... I tried to find you. You are good at hiding." I wondered if the pauses in his speech were due to some sort of brain damage. He almost breathed out between the pauses.

"If you kill me, Caesar will have your head."

He looked shocked, and he crept closer, grabbing my hand which was clinging to the basin's rim. "No, no. Never...Eve...You are like my mother...You saved me."

I tried to wrench my hand back, but he grabbed it fully. "Get away!"

His smile was crooked. "You'll see. Eve, you and I...we are meant for great things...together." He stood up and released my hand, which was cramping from how tightly he'd held it. Nuntius stopped, picked up my dirty dress, and held it to his face, smelling it and rubbing it over his cheeks. Winking at me, he sauntered out of my tent, dropping the dress just before the flap.

I exhaled slowly, then waited a few minutes to make sure he wasn't going to come back. I quickly got out and grabbed the towel, wrapping it around me. It was only then that I started to sob.


	8. Rabbit Warren

Vulpes' eyes narrowed into slits when he saw Nuntius leave Caesar's tent. With Caesar not wanting to be disturbed, there was only one reason left why he'd go inside in the first place. Nuntius had a blissful smile that didn't come from just talking to Lucius. No, he'd gone into see Eve.

He'd been outside looking over maps with Alerio, discussing plans. Alerio stopped talking and looked at him quizzically.

"Alerio, I have a task for you," Vulpes said slowly, keeping the ire from his voice. He turned his gaze from Nuntius and looked at his second-in-command.

"Ita, dominus, anything."

"If Nuntius goes near Eve, you are to tell me, and only me, right away."

Alerio saluted. "Of course, Vulpes."

Eve was important to Caesar's health, and therefore she was important to him. Having Nuntius creeping around scaring her wouldn't do his Imperator any good. There was also, disturbingly, a twinge of jealousy that he wouldn't admit to. He'd had Eve that night, and he found himself thinking about their encounter more often than he was comfortable. It was nothing but lust, he told himself. No, it was only that she was something new to him, a woman with fire and intelligence, that was all. He'd been around too many cowed slaves that as soon as something different came up, he was intrigued. Yes, she was intriguing, but she wouldn't last. Either she would refuse Caesar and be killed, or she would help Caesar and then what happened was up to his Imperator, no one else. It certainly wouldn't be up to Nuntius. Nor me, he supposed.

Nuntius was not disciplined, he was not Legion. Nuntius was a sadistic anarchist who was only here because it suited his outlook for the moment. What Vulpes did, he did for the Legion. Did he enjoy making people suffer? Yes, he supposed he did, if they deserved it. Everything people said the Legion did, he'd seen them do for less. Fathers killed their children out of anger, the Legion took children and made them strong. His own father had not been kind to him. The man had beat Vulpes and his mother almost daily. When he saw a Decanus slice his head off, Vulpes felt no pity. He also didn't feel pity when his mother was taken away, because she had been weak. She had stood by and let the beatings happen, and did nothing to defend him, a child, or herself. In the Legion, he'd found discipline, respect, power, strength. He was a legionary, through and through, that was where his loyalty lay

But now, now he had to plan both the destruction of the monorail, and the infiltration of the Lucky 38. One would be easy, the other would be nigh impossible.

Eve

My Pip-Boy said it was already seven in the morning. I had fallen asleep after my encounter with Nuntius, and after taking all my rage out on one of the pillows on my bed. Must have been more tired than I thought, but it's not surprising, given everything I'd been through. I was still wearing the vault suit I'd put on after my bath. The familiarity of it was the only thing I had in this very unfamiliar place.

I'd modified it quite a bit, taking the sleeves off to make the heat more bearable. It also had an added utility belt which made it easier to store medical supplies I'd need on the go. I rolled the bottom of the legs up to just below my knee and put on the only pair of shoes I had left, my sneakers that were also from the vault.

Lucius nodded to me. Did he ever leave Caesar's side? "Caesar wills that you come back in the afternoon."

I wanted to salute sarcastically, but kept it in check. Breakfast was some sort of hot grain cereal sweetened with cazador honey. It was kind of boring, but not half bad. There weren't many people in the tent, just Lucius and a handful of Praetorians. A slave woman was the one who had dished out my breakfast. I felt dirty just taking it from her. It felt so wrong to be served by people who were slaves. I didn't like it.

I brought my bowl back into the kitchen and started to wash it in the basin of water I'd found. The slave woman took it from me quickly and said, "no no no" over and over. She started washing it right from under me.

I had enough time to spare, it was still early morning. I thought about the slave named Siri, and her offer from yesterday. She was easy enough to find and it seems like she was well known among both slave and soldier alike. She stood over a table grinding herbs with a mortar and pestle into a fine powder. There was a young girl beside her who was taking the powder and measuring it, putting into satchels.

"Good morning," I greeted. Siri looked up and smiled. She wiped her hands on the front of her slave dress.

"Salve, domina."

"What are you making?" I asked curiously. I'd seen these satchels before. Legionnaires seemed to carry one on them at all times.

"It is a powder with medicinal properties, domina. If inhaled, it causes pain to be numbed and gives a tired man energy."

A stimulant, how interesting. I saw behind her some rows of drying broc flower and xander root. "Can you show me how you make it?"

Siri did, she was patient and kind when she explained. "There is the problem of the men becoming disorientated after the original effects wear off," she admitted.

"It's because of the xander root." I'd looked into this during my time with other doctors in the wasteland. Xander root was potent and dangerous in too high a dose. "I think you can lower that by one part. It should still work the same, without the drawback of the disorientation."

"Thank you, domina. I will be able to make twice as much now. Xander root is always so hard to find."

"Are you a doctor?" I asked her curiously. The way she explained how she made the powder plus the other herbs and bandages stacked neatly behind her made me think she was more than just an ordinary slave.

She smiled sadly. "No. I was halfway through my training when the Legion came through my town."

"I'm sorry." Siri shrugged slightly and resumed grinding the herbs to powder. "How long have you been here for?"

"Three years and counting. Freedom is only across the river but…" She paused and looked out past me towards the direction of the Colorado. "I've seen what happens to slaves who try to escape. Forgive me, domina. It has been a long time since I've talked to a free woman."

"How are women treated here in the Legion?"

"Free women or slaves?" She laughed mirthlessly. "They are almost the same thing. We are all someone's property, the only difference is if you are one man's, or every man's. At least the children are left alone. The soldiers usually stay away from women who are too ugly or too old. Usually." Seeing that Siri was neither ugly, nor old, I felt pity and anger for her. This place, this disgusting place had turned her into a shell of her former self. Yet there was still a spark of defiance in her, as small as it was, it gave me hope.

I stayed with her until the sun was high in the sky, burning down brightly. I had to go to Caesar.

Gaining entrance right away, I was led by a Praetorian to Caesar's office and bedroom in the back room of the giant tent.

Caesar was sitting at his desk, facing me. He was reading something and frowning. I cleared my throat discreetly. He gestured to sit across from him, but then ignored me while looking over a few letters. I stayed silent and maybe tried to take a peek at what had been written on his desk but everything was in Latin, and while I knew a few words and phrases, I'd need to actually be able to sit down properly to translate.

The bookshelf behind Caesar contained many old world books on anthropology, language, of course Roman history. Vulpes was right, Caesar was no doubt a highly intelligent man.

Caesar pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed, then addressed me. "So here you are. Let's get this over with." I was amazed at how calm he was, like it was only mildly unpleasant to be potentially diagnosed with a fatal disease.

The Auto-Doc booted up easily. It had enough power to run. Too bad about that module, but I could hack into it with my Pip-Boy and use that instead. I plugged in and attached them both together.

"Sit on the bed," I told him, not asking and not caring if I was being rude.

"You're lacking in bedside manner," he said threateningly, but he sat down as I'd asked.

"I'm sure you have other people who can coddle you." I glanced over at him as I was initialising the start-up sequence for the Auto-Doc. Caesar's jaw was clenched, either from nerves or because of my disrespect. I'd have to be more careful.

"Okay, let's see here…" I input the commands into the Auto-Doc to scan Caesar's head. It beeped into commission and a light shone out from one of its many surgical arms. I could see the image directly on my Pip-Boy. "Hmm, let's check out those lobes." It looked good until I reached the occipital lobe, where I could see the tumour plain as day. "Here it is."

I stopped the Auto-Doc and crouched beside Caesar to show him the image I'd saved. "It is a tumour, I'm afraid."

Caesar looked at it for a few seconds, then turned away. "So what now?"

"I can operate. It's not too deep inside the brain and it's small enough. I predict a high rate of success if it's operated on soon."

"How soon?"

"I wouldn't want to wait longer than a month."

"Bad fucking timing," he said more to himself than to me. People processed this kind of news in different ways. For Caesar, his tumour was an annoyance.

"There's also the recovery time to think about. Even with the Auto-Doc, you'll be in bed for at least a week."

"I suppose now the question is: will you operate or not?"

"Has the Weathers family been freed yet?" I countered.

"First thing tomorrow morning, as promised. They'll be escorted right to the gates of Freeside." He snorted derisively. "I'm sure the Followers will take them in."

"I'm going with them. Whether I come back or not is how you'll know my answer."

Caesar reached out and grabbed my wrist, pulling me down and twisting it painfully as he stood up over me. "I could have you crucified right now for speaking to me like this."

I cried out as the sharp pain echoed up my whole arm. He was strong for his age. Strong and ruthless. "I'm...no good to you...dead," I rasped. He pushed me away and I fell back.

"Get out."

I ran, stumbling into the main room. Lucius glanced at me, but said nothing.

Vulpes

Vulpes was summoned to Caesar's tent shortly after his meeting with Eve.

"You better be right about this, Inculta," the older man fumed. "My position is too precarious to be playing games." Caesar kept clenching and unclenching his fists at his side while he sat on his throne. Lucius stood stone-faced and, as always, at his place beside Caesar. Now the old man was doubting him too. Vulpes snorted inwardly. Lucius couldn't plan to tie up his laces, much less understand the delicate manipulations of people. Not like Vulpes did.

"I have not been wrong before, Imperator," Vulpes reminded him quietly. Any other Legionary would be shaking if they were in his position, but they were not in his position, because he earned his position by being exactly how he was right at this moment: a man who knew people.

"Go then. If you don't bring me back _someone_ who can fix me, I will put her head on a fucking spike and yours right beside her."

Vulpes bowed. "Ita vero." He knew Caesar, as mad as he was, was making an empty threat. About Vulpes, at least. Eve was in danger, of that there was no doubt.

He found Eve in her tent the next morning. Not able to knock, he opened the flap and cleared his throat. She was sitting cross-legged on her bed, listening to something on her Pip-Boy. Vulpes could hear a man's voice, soft and calming saying: "...daughter is a grown woman. Beautiful, intelligent, confident. Just like her mother. And as hard as it was to admit it, she doesn't need her daddy anymore."

Eve sniffled, then looked at Vulpes. She quickly wiped her eyes. "Well, is it time?"

Vulpes was confused. "Time?"

"I assume I have a cross with my name on it. Well, let's get it over with." She stood up proudly, with her head tilted up at him, a haughty look in her eyes. Her jaw was clenching and unclenching and there was a dare firing back at him in her dark brown eyes.

"I came here to escort you and the slave family to Freeside. Though if you'd rather be crucified, I _am_ rather good at it."

Eve's eyes narrowed with distrust. "I can't believe Caesar would willingly just let me go."

"Caesar has no use for a surgeon who won't operate. Either you help him, or you don't." It was easy to see the argument going on in her head. Finally she exhaled long and hard and nodded.

"Fine. Let's go. Whatever you want to do, it's not like I have a choice."

He wanted to point out she had the choice to stay and help Caesar, but he held back. She grabbed her bag. He tried to take it from her, but the look she gave him made him pause. He wanted to laugh, and not unkindly. She was amusing.

The ferry was waiting for them, with Lucullus at the helm.

Vulpes sat against the railing with his legs stretched out in front of him. Eve, he noticed, sat with her knees up, holding them in a hug. She was agitated by something.

The sun was irritating him. It was always like this when he was directly in it. The fact that it was reflecting off the water didn't help. Vulpes put his goggles on.

"You're an albino, you know," Eve said casually. She made slight eye contact before looking down at her hands.

"What is that?"

"It's a lack of pigment in the skin, eyes and hair. It's why you need to wear your goggles in the sun."

"Ah yes, my cursed colouring," he snorted. It had always been a point of contention and the excuse his father used when something went wrong, leading to Vulpes being beaten. "Is that what's on your mind?"

"I have a lot on my mind." Eve shrugged casually. No doubt she did, he thought. "It's not a curse, by the way. It's just genetics."

Vulpes laughed derisively, causing Eve to startle a little bit. He couldn't help it. "Genetics doesn't mean much when you grow up in a backwards tribe where every speck of dust is some sort of omen." He looked at the back of his hand, pale as the full moon, the hairs barely visible. "My _albino_ colouring was a bad omen, for your information."

Maybe he was a bad omen. He certainly had been one for her.


	9. Fox and his Rabbits

We reached Cottonwood Cove in an uncomfortable silence. I should have been more relieved to be leaving, but part of me still feared the whole thing was an elaborate ruse, like I'd go to see the Weathers and then, surprise! I'd be put in the slave pen with them. Or they'd be killed right in front of my eyes to demonstrate just how far Caesar was willing to go to get me to do what he wanted.

When Vulpes offered to take my bag, I practically threw it at him. Let him act like the slave for once. He'd hoisted it easily over his shoulder and gave me a pointed look, even through the darkness of his goggles, I felt it. He knew exactly what I was thinking. He always seemed to know. I hated how I noticed the muscles of his arms as he walked ahead of me. I hated how I started blushing thinking of those naked arms all around me. Naked arms and naked other things.

The sooner I was away from him, the better.

"Ave Vulpes Inculta," a man I hadn't seen before was waiting for them. Large black goggles were situated atop his head, the bottom half of his face was covered by a cloth. The man himself had skin like dark, fertile soil. He was uncomfortably tall and large. An imposing figure for sure.

"Ave Decanus Severus, true to Caesar," Vulpes replied. They saluted each other. Severus was giving me a look that was both curious and hostile. It would be better to be ignored, I thought. "I am here to oversee the release of the Weathers slaves."

I could see Severus's eye twitching. "They are in their room. Vulpes Inculta, why are they being set free? And who is _she_?" He barely glanced at me, so underneath him I was.

"She carries the Mark of Caesar," Vulpes said casually, but I could hear the warning in his tone. "Caesar's machinations are unknowing, _Decanus_ , and not for us to question."

"Ita vero, Vulpes Inculta, I meant no disrespect. I will take you to the slaves."

We walked to the slave pen, but the Weatherses weren't in there. Severus took us to a small office building adjacent to the pens. He unlocked the door and held it open for both Vulpes and I.

"Dr. Eve!" Sammy cried out, running up to us. She stopped when she saw Vulpes and Severus and looked at me with uncertainty. It did look like they were being taken care of. The room had only one bed, but it was big enough for all three of them to sleep in. There was a rundown couch, a table with only two chairs, and lights. The family themselves looked clean, well-fed, and otherwise healthy.

"Hi Sammy." I took a few steps and knelt in front of her. "Are you feeling better?" She nodded absently, still looking at the two legionaries with distrust.

"Come," Vulpes ordered, not unkindly. "We have to make it to Nelson before nightfall."

"You're coming with us?" I thought we would just be on our own from the cove.

"Of course. Caesar's will is that you are to arrive safely. You of all people should know what happens when a woman is out in the Mojave alone." Insufferable bastard. I hope the glare I was giving him was enough to make his tiny heart stop beating, but he only looked back at me calmly.

"Who is Nelson?" Sammy asked me innocently.

Yet it was Vulpes who replied to her. "Not who, where. Nelson is a Legion settlement up north." Sammy ran and hid behind her mother, terrified to be spoken to by Vulpes. Kenny, bless him, puffed up and crossed his arms threateningly.

"You're taking us to another Legion camp?" I asked through gritted teeth. I couldn't believe it.

Sighing, Vulpes held up his hand. "Quies. It's on the way and it is the safest place between here and Freeside. Or would you rather sleep outside with the radscorpions and raiders?" I started pacing. I knew Myrna and the children were watching me with a terrified fascination. They had no idea what was going on, or why. Vulpes continued, "sometimes it is best to acquiesce to the demons you know. You still carry the Mark of Caesar."

"All right."

Vulpes.

They made it to Nelson a little after nightfall. They would have made it sooner if not for Eve's distrust. Not that Vulpes blamed her, he would be mistrustful too, but it was a hinderance. Eve had spent the walk entertaining children of this abomination named Fawkes. How interesting that her mutant friend's name was so similar to his own alias. He doubted any of the stories were true, even if this Fawkes existed, everyone knew super mutants could barely string two sentences together. Still, it kept the children entertained for the duration of their walk. Their mother kept peering at him with fear in her eyes. It annoyed him.

Vulpes had to take them off the road through some rough terrain, but the alternative would be to walk through Camp Searchlight, something he didn't think the group would appreciate. Camp Searchlight had been another stroke of fortune for Vulpes, one which earned him high praise by Caesar, and one of many acts he'd done to secure his place at his imperator's side. Turning the NCR profligates into ghouls had been a sweet side effect of his plan. They deserved no kindness from him or the Legion. Yet sometimes the ghouls, mindless as they were, walked aimlessly from the camp and had to be put down. It was easy enough, but children and women were unpredictable creatures so who knew how they would react to be chased by one.

He was glad it was dark, as he had made an oversight in regards to the crucified NCR soldiers decorating the camp. A sight meant to intimidate any NCR snipers who might be watching, and to mock them.

Decanus Dead Sea was there to greet them, having been told of their arrival by the scouts keeping tabs on the outskirts of Nelson.

"Wait here," Vulpes told the group.

"Ave Vulpes Inculta," Dead Sea saluted as Vulpes walked towards him.

"Ave, true to Caesar." They saluted each other. "I am here with Eve of the Capitol, she carries the Mark of Caesar." Dead Sea's eyes widened as he looked at the woman glaring at him from beyond Vulpes. "The family with her are going to Freeside with me. They are not to be harmed."

"Ita vero, I will let my men know."

"The mother and her two children will need a room of their own. A guard must be posted outside their door, though I do not think they will be any trouble."

Dead Sea nodded. "And the other?"

"She will stay with me." Vulpes didn't like the smirk that Dead Sea had on his face. "She already caused the death of one legionary with her wiles. I only trust myself to watch her."

"It will be done, Vulpes Inculta."

"Another thing; have the crucified men covered by morning. They can be shown again once we are gone." Vulpes knew it was the most strangest of requests, and he could see Dead Sea trying to process it. The decanus nodded slightly and shrugged.

"Ita vero."

Eve.

"I'm not staying in this room with you," I hissed to Vulpes. We'd dropped the Weathers family off in their room. I had assured Myrna that all was well, and though I could see the uncertainty in her eyes, I knew she trusted me. I was, after all, the reason her family was doing so well and would, hopefully, be free soon.

"You are," Vulpes replied with a finality. "I have not yet forgotten your escape from the wagon, mea lepusculus."

There were two single beds in the dorm type room. It wasn't glamorous, but it would work. "You better just stay away from me," I hissed, stomping over to one of the beds and laying on it, my back towards Vulpes. I heard him chuckle, which only infuriated me more. I heard him take off his boots, and the other bed creaked as he lay on it. I had forgotten to take off my sneakers, but I wasn't going to give him any satisfaction, no matter how badly my feet were going to sweat. If I were alone, I would have tried to escape, but I had the Weathers family to think about and I wasn't going to put them in any more jeopardy than I already had.


	10. Fox and his Rabbit Family

Of course Vulpes only slept a few hours, enough to regenerate his energy, but he never fell into a deep sleep anymore. A man who sleeps to dream is a man who doesn't wake up. The only place he really slept was when he was at the Fort, surrounded by his brothers. He would not allow himself to sleep even here, in Nelson, not with Eve to watch.

The early morning light was just coming through the dirty window. It lay across Eve's sleeping face like a gentle caress. She was curled up in fetally, facing him now. A tendril of her hair had fallen over her nose and mouth. Vulpes crouched low beside her, watching her dream. He moved the hair gently away with a finger. It is something to watch another person sleep because it allowed you to see them at their most vulnerable. Here she was without tension, without fear, not knowing that he was watching her and could, if he wanted, kill her quietly. Of course he wouldn't hurt her. Not when she was so important to Caesar. Though, if she didn't come back with him, his orders were quite clear. He was confident in his ability to understand how she worked, but by the off chance she did leave, he would not be happy to kill her.

Caesar wanted her at all costs. When Vulpes spoke to him, there was a grudging respect for her, well hidden as Caesar tried to keep it.

Her lips were open as she breathed through her mouth noiselessly now, but earlier she'd been snoring softly. Vulpes sighed and stood up. He had to make her see reason, if he had to manipulate her, so be it. If she wouldn't help Caesar he would die and the Legion would fall apart. If she wouldn't help Caesar _she_ would die, crucified, left out to rot in the sun.

He left her to sleep and walked out the door. The camp was already stirring, some having been awake all night and others just waking. He was pleased to see the crucified bodies were covered in various cloths and tarps. Eve would appreciate this, and it would win her over if just a bit, sparing the children from those sights.

"Vulpes Inculta, domine, a messenger arrived a few minutes ago looking for you," a low-ranking officer reported, standing in deference to the great Inculta.

Vulpes went to the Frumentarii scout, low on the hierarchy, but one of his own. The scout approached him, looking haggard and sweaty. He must have ran from the cove. "Ave," the scout said quickly saluting. "Alerio sent me to tell you that there is a message at your six. He said you would understand.

A message? Ah, the messenger, Courier Six, Nuntius. Nuntius was supposed to be gone to New Vegas to destroy the monorail. Vulpes supposed he had heard that Eve was being freed, something that would no doubt cause him ire. The destruction of the monorail was of the utmost importance, but Nuntius wouldn't be fueled by that, he was fueled by his obsession with Eve. That was precisely why Vulpes had sent Nuntius away. Someone had told him, Vulpes decided, whether innocently or not, it would not stand. Nuntius was too small-minded to understand Vulpes' plans.

"Wake the family," Vulpes ordered the soldier standing guard outside their room. "Give them a canteen each and some rations. We leave in ten minutes' time."

Eve.

"Eve," a voice whispered in my dream. The voice was quiet and commanding. It felt familiar, though the figure was dark and I couldn't make out the blur. "Eve."

The figure drew closer. It was not who I thought it was. It was Nuntius, covered in blood, in his hands were the severed heads of Sammy and Kenny.

"Eve!"

I awoke with a start, my heart racing in my chest. Looking around the unfamiliar room it took me a while to register that it was not Nuntius with me, but Vulpes kneeling in front of my bed. "Vulpes?"

"Ita, est I. It is time to go."

I rubbed the sleep from my eyes and yawned. It was still early, but the morning sun was coming up. Vulpes wasn't dressed like a Legionnaire anymore. He looked like a trader or farmer. He was wearing tight jeans that hung low on his slim hips, leather cowboy boots, a white shirt with rolled up sleeves, a blue handkerchief around his neck, and a cowboy hat which was perched forward, almost hiding his eyes, which were protected by aviator sunglasses.

"You could almost pass as human," I said snidely, trying to counteract the shiver I felt by seeing him dressed in such a way.

He ignored the slight. "Don't wear your vault suit today. It's too easy to spot in the distance. Try to look like you're a settler on your way home."

"Fine, fine." I did have some other clothes in my bag. I could pull something together. I found a plaid button-up shirt and some jeans. I put my hair up in a low ponytail. "You don't need to supervise me getting dressed," I said pointedly.

Vulpes stalked over to me, a predatory smile on his face. He grabbed my ponytail gently in his fingers. "As though you have anything to hide from me, mea lupusculus," he whispered into my ear, sending shivers down my spine. The smile he gave was one that knew exactly the way he affected me. He turned and slowly walked out, and I watched the way his jeans hugged his backside. I was flushing from embarrassment and lust and shame.

Vulpes.

When Eve came out, the Weathers family was already with Vulpes just by the gate. The family, naturally, stood away from the man giving him wary looks.

"I'm ready to go," Eve announced. She was carrying her bag over her shoulder.

Vulpes held up a hand. "Not yet." He pointed at Myrna. "You are Eve's sister-in-law, she is the sister of your husband whom we are going to meet. Do you understand?" Myrna nodded quickly. Vulpes looked to the children. "Eve is your aunt. I am your uncle. You call me either Uncle Fox, or Uncle, that's it." Sammy looked confused, Kenny looked at Vulpes petulantly. "Eve," he said turning to her, pulling a ring out of his pocket. "You are my wife. We are newlyweds and we are traveling together to meet Myrna's husband." Before she could protest, he slipped the ring easily on her finger. He was already wearing his wedding ring. "Repeat what I have said."

Myrna Weathers could not have been more afraid. "Eve...is...my sister-in-law…" she stammered. "She's my h-h-husband's sister. You're her husb-b-band." It would have to do. What else could he expect from an uneducated profligate.

Vulpes turned to the children. "Now you." Sammy looked like she was going to cry.

Eve glared at Vulpes. She kneeled down in front of Sammy. "Have you ever played pretend, Sammy?"

"Yes. I like to be a deafclaw."

"You would be a great deathclaw, Sammy. Today, though, we're going to pretend to be a family. Won't that be fun? You can call me Auntie Eve, okay? And he will be your uncle." Eve looked back at Vulpes with disgust. He sighed. "So we're your auntie and your uncle, okay?"

Sammy brightened up. "So you're my auntie now. And we're going to see Daddy?"

The line of pretend was blurred. From Myrna's pained expression, they were decidedly not going to see this child's daddy any time soon. Not that he cared, he only needed her to believe.

Myrna patted Sammy affectionately on the head. "That's right, baby." Good, the woman knew what was at stake. She then looked pointedly at her son. "Right, Kenny?" Kenny nodded slightly. He was at the age where he knew the world wasn't about pretend anymore. His childhood innocence had been lost when the Legion came. He was older than Vulpes had been, he would be fine.

"Good, let's go."

Eve.

We stopped for lunch just after the 188 Trading Post. I could tell Vulpes was wary about being near so many people. It was fine, though. It was strange to see Vulpes in this element, tipping his cowboy hat at the ladies and bidding everyone a "good afternoon", like he wasn't a Legion sadist.

"Ya'll passin' by to New Vegas?" The man who looked like he was traveling with his own family asked us. His wife was plump and had an open sort of face. They had a boy with them who was about fifteen or so, he had the beginnings of acne, as happened sometimes with boys going through puberty. I panicked, hoping that the children would remember their story.

"You betcha," Vulpes replied easily. "Good farming out there, I hear." He pulled me close by wrapping his arm around my shoulder. "Me and the wife's family here are makin' our way there." I smiled awkwardly. I pinched Vulpes hard in the side for that. If it hurt, he had no reaction.

"We're going to see my daddy!" Sammy yelled happily. "And Fawkes, my Auntie Eve's super mutant!" All of us conspirators froze, all except Sammy who was smiling brightly.

When Vulpes started laughing, I was shocked. I didn't know the man could laugh. "Out the mouths of babes, eh?" He said winking to the confused other family. "I can't wait until we make one of our own." At this point he looked at me tenderly, but I could see his eyes crinkle with amusement. He brought his hand to my stomach and patted it affectionately. I was going to murder him. I pressed my heel down on his foot.

Vulpes' jaw clenched and I smiled at him, playing the game. If the family thought we were strange, they didn't let on. We bid them good day and continued. "You're an asshole," I told him when we were out of earshot.

"That's hardly a way to speak to your husband."

"Woe betide any woman who marries you," I muttered, walking off ahead of him.


	11. A Fox's Lessons

Author's Note: It makes me so happy that people are following and favouriting this story! I hope you all enjoy it.

Lunch was just dried meat rations and water from our canteens, but that was enough for us. The children went to play in the remains of an old world semi truck, abandoned and long since looted. We could see them well enough. I was worried about them cutting themselves on something rusty, but I suppose Tetanus was the least of our worries at the moment. I wanted the children to act like children and play for a bit. It felt good to hear their laughter.

"Myrna, do you have anyone waiting for you in Freeside?" I asked to make conversation.

"No one. Not anymore." Her shoulders slumped forward.

"I'm sorry," I replied, rubbing her back. "I shouldn't have brought it up." Vulpes was pretending to be looking like he wasn't listening, but I knew he was.

"He left us, you know, when the Legion came. He just fucking ran away. The kids saw, but I don't think Sammy knows how to process it."

I couldn't believe someone would do that. It was unconscionable. "You're talking about your husband?" She nodded. "What does Kenny think?"

"He has a lot of anger, but then he always had that. His father...turned into a vicious man. I was leaving him, taking the kids with me, see, and he was chasing after us, begging me for a second goddamn chance. As soon as the Legion came, the fucking coward ran." She spat on the ground next to her.

I was processing the story when I heard Sammy scream. All three of us ran towards the children who were backed into a corner of the abandoned truck's trailer with a giant radroach clicking towards them. Radroaches normally aren't aggressive, but they're scary and will attack if provoked. Kenny had pulled his sister behind him but he was frightened. He was a brave boy, I thought at that moment, nothing like his father.

In a blur, Vulpes had stabbed the radroach in the top of its abdomen with a hunting knife he'd had strapped in his boot. The radroach screeched pitifully and its legs were desperately trying to run away. "Come here, boy," Vulpes commanded. He had another knife out, this one smaller, and was holding it hilt-first towards Kenny. Kenny looked at his mother who was frozen to the spot. Shaking and slow, he took the weapon in his small hands. "Kill it."

Kenny looked at Vulpes and there seemed to be an unspoken conversation going on between them. Vulpes was patiently waiting for him to come to a decision. Kenny's face took on a look of determination. He stabbed into the radroach's head clumsily, but the knife did the job and the giant bug stopped moving. Kenny dropped the blade to the ground.

"To fear a thing is to allow it to control you. Now that you've killed it, there is nothing to fear." Vulpes took both the knives, cleaned them on his pant leg, and walked away, saying nothing more.

I didn't like the look Kenny gave Vulpes, it was one of admiration. A boy at his age was impressionable, and I really didn't think Vulpes was someone to look up to. Sammy ran towards her mother, who scooped her up.

"Come on everyone," I said with a cheerfulness I didn't feel. "Time to go to Freeside."

Freeside was little better than New Vegas. Already Vulpes could spot thugs looking at them like targets. His eyes narrowed. He almost wanted them to try. One was getting too close for comfort, and looked like he was on some sort of chems. It was easy enough to fall back behind, pull the guy into an alley, and slice his throat from behind. Always from behind; he didn't want to get blood all over him. He rejoined Eve and the group, ignoring her quizzical stares. When the Legion took over New Vegas these degenerates would not be tolerated. As in Flagstaff, families would not fear such things as these mongrels trying to get them for scraps.

There was still no sign of Nuntius, but he knew he was nearby. The crazed man would not let Eve go this time. If Vulpes had to kill Eve, Nuntius would be an obstacle. Vulpes would have to find him first and reason with him, if such a man could be reasoned with. Though he'd never gone against Caesar, he thought it would be best if Nuntius suffered an unfortunate _accident_ and soon.

The gate to the Old Mormon Fort was just ahead. Eve's face was shining happily, finally she realised that Caesar kept his word. Eve was hugging Myrna and talking to Sammy. Saying goodbye, he mused. He'd noticed the boy, Kenny, was staying closer to him. A bond had been formed between them, for better or worse.

He turned towards the boy and pulled the hunting knife out of the sheath in his boot. It had been used just recently on some degenerate filth, but the boy didn't have to know that. "Here," he said, spinning it in his hand to give to the boy by the hilt. Kenny looked at him quizzically. "A reminder that weakness is failure. Train every day, become strong. Protect them." He nodded towards the family. If the family was still here when the Legion marched through New Vegas, Vulpes would personally take the boy under his wing. Frumentarius or legionnaire, the boy would make a fine soldier. Kenny nodded almost adoringly. He took the knife as though it was the most delicate thing, like glass instead of steel, and tucked it into his belt.

"Bye Uncle Fox." Kenny turned and ran towards his sister and mother. Eve said something to him, but the boy's mind was obviously on other things.

When the family disappeared into the fort, Eve sauntered back.

"Well, I guess we're done, then." She kept unconsciously twisting the fake wedding band around her finger. He'd noticed her doing that a lot on their short journey. A slave collar of another calibre, he mused darkly, as it had been for his mother.

"Indeed." He looked past her to the fort. "Some advice." She nodded for him to continue. Now to set the snare. "Stay away from there for a day or two, if you decide to join the Followers of the Apocalypse." He didn't know, or care what her plans were. That was not the point.

"Why?"

He snorted. "Why do you think? You go free, what do you think that means for someone else? There's a doctor in there, one Arcade Gannon. He was always second on my list should I not be able to procure you."

A stream of emotions appeared one by one on Eve's face: anger, terror, sadness, shock. "You...you asshole." She paced in front of him, stomping angrily. "You bunch of fucking assholes!" He didn't remember hearing her swear so profusely before. "You think that you can just...trade one life for another? That it's so easy to do?"

"Caesar is dying," he reminded her simply. "You'll be happy to know that I have intel on this Dr. Gannon. He was once with the Enclave. Doesn't that make it better? Doesn't he _deserve_ to go in your place?"

She pushed his chest with all her might. He allowed it. "You're all monsters."

Vulpes' nostrils flared, his emotions becoming uncharacteristically unchecked. He took a big step towards her, causing Eve to move back unsteadily. "So you say, yet _you_ had a position to bargain. _You_ could have asked for anything and Caesar would have granted it to you. This man, he will be a slave for the rest of his life. Whether or not that will be easy will be up to him."

Eve closed her eyes, her brain thinking of all scenarios. He knew that look, he'd seen it on many people he'd made unsavoury deals with. Would she make the noble sacrifice? Or would she allow this man, a member of the Enclave, take her place? Would she live or die? She was taking too long. He grabbed the Mark of Caesar around her neck and pulled it out. "This is the only one in existence. Caesar will not take it from you. I have his word and you have mine."

"Your word means nothing to me," she whispered. He didn't take it personally, he was after all going to have to kill her should she say no. Her eyes shining with unshed tears, she said calmly, "I have terms."

"Let me hear them before you take them to Caesar." She glared at him and he snorted. "I can help you."

Eve.

I laid it all out. Everything I wanted if I were going to make a deal with the devil. "I want Siri to be my assistant. Her an any other women who work as healers will be trained as doctors. They are _not_ to be touched anymore unless _they_ want it."

"That...should be fine," Vulpes admitted slowly. "We will need them when we take the Hoover Dam." I could see his brain turning; I wondered if he was truly thinking of how he could help spin this to Caesar, or if he was thinking how he could easily manipulate me again.

"Fine. My second term is I can come and go as I please, to and from the Fort. I will not be a slave."

"Done." That was too easy, so I wasn't surprised when he added, "if you leave, you leave with an escort. For your safety. You're too valuable."

"Then you have to be my escort," I countered snidely. Let him feel crushed under my heels for once.

"I accept, though you must be patient with my schedule. I am a very busy man." The bastard was actually smirking slightly.

Unclenching my fists, which had turned into balls of rage at his nonchalance, I continued, "Third, I am only Caesar's physician. He will have to do what I say, when I say it, in regards to his health. I'm not going to coddle him or kiss his ass like some cowed slave."

"Ah." Vulpes actually took his sunglasses off and rubbed the bridge of his nose. "That you will have to discuss with Caesar. And carefully."

"Fair enough. I also want to the slaves to get medical care, from Siri and her healers, or from me if needed." When he opened his mouth, I waved him to silence. "Yes, Caesar will be my main priority, but I am a doctor and my oath states I help anyone who needs it. Dictator _or_ slave." I stared at him pointedly until he nodded once abruptly.

"And the soldiers? Will you help them?"

"I thought your kind just killed the wounded to save yourselves the hassle," I countered, putting my hands on my hips.

"Sometimes. It depends on who is leading the charge. Legate Lanius, for example, thinks nothing of killing his own troops in battle, so long as he is winning. Failure is not an option for him, and to be injured is a grievous failure."

"The Butcher of the East," I whispered with a shudder. Of course I'd overheard snippets from soldiers who held this man in awe. I'd hoped they were just embellished stories, but who knew in this culture? He could be even worse.

"There is one more thing," Vulpes started casually. He was nodding towards a dark alley going parallel to the fort's large brick exterior. I turned around to see what he was looking at. Vulpes took a step beside me, staying close. "I can protect you from him." Nuntius.


	12. Fox sends a Message

Nuntius, after being found out, charged towards us furiously. His left eye was twitching, perhaps a side-effect from brain damage. "What the...fuck?" He breathed, yelling and causing daily passersby to take notice. He wasn't dressed like Legion, but he looked like a mercenary, dirty and wearing leather. He was sporting a few days' worth of stubble. The scar on his skull was a focal point for me.

"Courier Six," Vulpes greeted him calmly. "How interesting to find you here."

Nuntius' eyes narrowed at the insult. He was nearly frothing, his face right up in front of Vulpes. "What the fuck...are you doing...with Eve? Where...are you taking...her?"

"Eve and I are on Legion business, as per Caesar's wishes. We are headed back to the Fort tomorrow morning." His voice remained calm, almost bored with the whole ordeal, but Vulpes kept his arm a bit in front of me and I could feel the tension coming off him in waves.

I hated to do it, but I found myself siding up to Vulpes, wanting his protection from the insane, broken man before me.

"Is...this true?" Nuntius asked me. I nodded quickly. His eyes flashed to the ring on Vulpes' hand, then to mine. I could see his brain thinking furiously. "You dare?" He hissed at Vulpes. "Take...what's mine?"

In under one second, he became red and his face was distorted with a fury I'd never seen in anyone before. He let out a guttural howl and threw himself at Vulpes. Vulpes pushed me out of the way, and took the blow. Nuntius grappled Vulpes to the ground, trying to straddle his chest. Vulpes was blocking fists with his forearms, and with patience and skill he locked his long legs around Nuntius' waist. With some maneuvering, Vulpes managed to grab one of Nuntius' arms and use his legs as a lever. I could see the ensnared arm almost reaching the breaking point, but he was still struggling. A crowd of people were gathering around.

"Give up!" Vulpes hissed, but Nuntius, still roaring with rage, would not. Vulpes gave a final tug and I could hear a snap. I cringed. Whether it was broken or dislocated, it was sure to hurt badly. Using his advantage, Vulpes climbed on top of Nuntius' waist and with two big punches with his right hand, Nuntius was out. His body twitched a few times, then was was eerily still.

Vulpes stood up, shook his fist out, and wiped the sweat from his face with the bottom of his now untucked shirt. It rode up, showing his pelvis line and the trickle of fine nearly white hair going into his jeans.

"What's going on here?" An authoritative voice called out. Two NCR soldiers were striding towards us.

Vulpes looked at me calmly, his eyes soft and his mouth in a small smile. It was up to me. He was testing me, letting me make the call. What would I do? I could tell the NCR soldiers that this was the infamous Vulpes Inculta, whose posters were plastered on the walls of their offices, or I could play the story. If I told the truth, the Legion would find me and punish me, or Nuntius would find me and who knows what he would do with me. There was also Vulpes Inculta's own threat to bring another man into my place. I couldn't do that to someone else, even if he had been Enclave at one point or another.

I licked my bottom lip and turned to the soldiers, putting panic in my voice. "This man tried to rob my husband!" I said, pointing to Nuntius. I ran up to Vulpes and put my arms around him, nuzzling my face in his chest. He wrapped his arms around me protectively.

One of the NCR soldiers turned Nuntius' face upward. "He looks like a mercenary. Maybe fallen on hard times. We'll take him from here, ma'am." I made a point of sniffling and nodding with my head still pressed to Vulpes.

Vulpes kissed the spot above my ear. "My little Frumentarius," he whispered. I felt the day's stubble rub against my skin. I shivered. What is going on? I asked myself continually. I realised we'd just been holding each other for a full minute while the crowd dispersed. The NCR soldiers had taken Nuntius away, one carrying his legs, the other his arms.

I lifted my head up and exhaled slowly. We glanced at each other for a few heart-pounding seconds that felt like an eternity. Vulpes swooped down and kissed me softly on the lips. It was chaste and felt as intimate as any kiss I'd ever had, which wasn't many.

Turning my head to the side, I took a tentative step back, shaking my head. Turning to walk away, I was quickly grabbed by the arm and spun back around.

Vulpes grabbed my upper arms in a vice-like grip and kissed me again, desperate and hard, pressing almost painfully against me. My legs turned to jelly and I was sure I would have melted to the ground had he not been there to hold me up. Ashamedly, I kissed him back, even grabbed him by fistfuls of his shirt. Until I remembered myself.

With a yell, I pushed him with all my strength. He stepped back. "Don't touch me!" I hissed. "I'm not some...I'm not a woman you can just kiss and fondle because you want to."

"Oh, I don't think I was the only one who wanted to." He smiled slightly, a bit out of breath but his eyes were hard again, his mouth worked its way back into a grim line.

We were combatants in this strange arena of emotions. I hated him, he was evil and stood for everything wrong with the world. My body was my betrayer because even though I was glaring at him, his light blue eyes and hard mouth was making my stomach do flip flops.

Finally I could see Vulpes regain himself. His jaw clenched a few times.

"Come with me," Vulpes ordered. He grabbed my hand and picked up my bag, which had fallen forgotten on the dusty street. We walked to a place with a gaudy sign proclaiming "The Atomic Wrangler".

"What are we doing here?" I was frightened. What was he going to do? I was prepared to fight him with everything I had.

"It's too late to head back. We stay the night here and go on in the morning." He looked at me sternly before we went through the door. "Remember to behave yourself, _Mrs. Fox_."

Vulpes threw down a bag of caps on the counter and asked for a room. The woman behind the counter was dressed in a smart business suit with her hair up in a no-nonsense bun. She smirked and said, "Have fun, kids." I wanted to shout back a retort but Vulpes led me up the stairs.


	13. Fox and the Legion

Vulpes was livid. At Eve, at Nuntius, but most of all he was mad at himself. That kiss was not apart of the plan, and it wouldn't stand.

Under the guise of being a married couple, he had, naturally, gotten a room with only one bed. The room wasn't as nice as the ones at The Tops, but it was clean and that as all that mattered.

His anger diminished slightly when he saw Eve stomp to the bed, take all the blankets and pillows off, and proceeded to make herself a little nest on the floor. Her anger at him came off her in waves.

Being away from The Fort, with this woman who was neither slave nor profligate but somewhere in between, was doing something to his head. He'd never met a woman so defiant and strong. He secretly hoped that she never bent to the Legion, if it were possible.

Sighing, he took his boots off and laid on the bare mattress. If she thought this was a punishment for him, she was sorely mistaken. He'd slept on worse.

Eve.

Dad was in my dream. The same dream I had over and over again. Dad was arguing with Colonel Autumn. I was banging on the glass that separated us, but the door to the bulkhead had been sealed. Dr. Li was indomitable, even then she was trying to force the mechanism that would open the door to save my father. Dad gave me one look, a small smile and agreed to help the Enclave. "Dad! Dad!" I kept shouting, but what would I say?

Dad overloaded the system, causing radiation to contaminate the bulkhead. His suffering body, bent and contorted, managed to walk to me, put his hand one last time on the glass between us. His last word ever spoken, to me or anyone, had been "run". Though I got out of there in real life, in my dream I always stayed and watched as the skin boiled off my father's body, leaving nothing but a puddle of putrefaction and bone in a lab coat. This was the point in the dream where I'd normally wake up soaked in my own sweat and tears. This time, however, my father's skeleton stood up, its skull grinning with madness. "I'm very disappointed in you," it said with an unmoving mandible. "Disappointed. Disappointed. Disappointed. Disappointed."

I awoke to the sounds of my own yelling. My body was moist from sweat and my heart was racing in my chest.

Vulpes was sitting on the side of the bed, his elbows on his knees. He was watching me with a detached curiosity. "You were yelling at your father," he said casually.

"Not at. For." I wiped the sweat off my forehead and took a few shaky breaths. It must be the middle of the night still. The only light in the room were reflections of that gaudy sign, and from my Pip-Boy. "I told you my father died by the Enclave, but I didn't tell you how, or that I was there when it happened."

Vulpes tilted his head a bit. "How did your father die?"

And since he was there and willing to listen, I told him. When I was finished, Vulpes didn't say anything. It looked like he was just absorbing the information. "I guess now you're going to use this against me too."

He closed his eyes for a moment and inhaled sharply. "I also watched my father die."

"I'm sorry. Was it...when the Legion came?"

He nodded. "It was a great day. When my father's head rolled towards me, I felt free for the first time in my life."

"What about your mother?" I was curious now, my nightmare forgotten. I sat up cross-legged.

"Weak, complacent. The woman wouldn't lift a finger to help me, or herself." He snorted with disgust.

"So your father hurt children, hurt women, but now you hurt women and children." As gently as I tried to phrase it, I knew I'd made a mistake right away. Vulpes' eyes flashed with anger. He sprung from the bed and crouched menacingly before me. He made his hands into fists and I flinched, sure he would strike me.

"You. Know. Nothing." Deadly words coming from a deadly mouth.

My jaw clenched, tears sprung to my eyes unwelcome. "Or maybe know just enough, _Vulpes Inculta_ , the Fox, or...the Brute." I glared at him, daring him to prove me right, to hit me just like his father would have. It seemed like the time between us was an eternity. His rage was almost palpable, his fists still clenched until suddenly they weren't. It was like an off switch had been pulled.

He got up and walked out the door, slamming it.

The lobby and bar of the Atomic Wrangler wasn't busy. There were a few haggard gamblers playing the slots like emotionless automatons, the side-effect of this profligate culture. Weak-willed, Vulpes thought, and serving no purpose. The sooner he got back to The Fort, the sooner the Legion took over, the better as far as he was concerned.

"Lovers' quarrel?" There was a man now behind the bar polishing a glass with a cloth. Vulpes glared at him with enough menace that the man put the glass down and held a hand up. "Easy." Vulpes could see his right hand sneaking under the bar, no doubt to the gun concealed there.

"A whiskey," Vulpes said. The man, convinced now that Vulpes wasn't a threat, nodded and poured him a generous amount. Vulpes threw some caps onto the top of the bar and sat.

"We got whores. It isn't busy tonight, I can give you a discount. The missus doesn't have to know."

"No, thank you," Vulpes clipped. The man shrugged and went back to cleaning the glass, but he kept an eye on him. The last thing Vulpes wanted was a filthy profligate whore in his bed. Vulpes sat down at a table and spun the liquid around. He didn't imbibe, ever. At most, he would have a sip or two to keep up appearances, but alcohol equated a loss of mind. He'd seen what alcohol did to weak-willed people: puking in gutters, undisciplined fights, screaming matches on the streets. It disgusted him. No, Vulpes would sit with his drink and when the bartender wasn't looking, he'd pour it out somewhere discreetly. He was only waiting until dawn so he could go and meet one of his NCR agents. He had to get Nuntius released at once. The monorail's destruction was high on the list of things he needed to do to help the cause. At least he knew the deranged man's weakness, though he didn't like what it was.

He sighed. Eve. Was she right? Was he like his father? He asked himself. As a man now grown, he told himself his mother was weak, and that he didn't feel anything for her when she was taken away. He thought about it from when he was a child though, was he really so unemotional? He had been scared, of course, as any eight year old would be at seeing his village torn apart. His mother had been yelling for him, reaching her hand to him as she was dragged away and he just stood there watching. Then he was corralled with the other boys and told to fight. So he did. It had been messy and brutal; the other boy hadn't wanted to fight him. They hadn't been friends, but they'd known each other since childhood. The boy still had hope that someone would save him. Vulpes hadn't had hope. He was clumsy, but beat the boy into a pulp with his tiny fists which had burned from the pain. He remembered being angry, crying. A Centurion, dead now, handed him a machete and told Vulpes to finish the job. When Vulpes hesitated, it was made clear that either the boy died, or they both died. So Vulpes killed the boy.

Such was being birthed into the Legion. After that, he'd had no time to mourn what he'd done, because he was made to march for days on end, he'd been too exhausted to think of anything. Then came his training, he had to be focused on survival, that was the only thing on his mind. He learned that killing, when done once, got easier with time. He learned that his village was weak, and that it was the will of Mars, the new god, that only the strong should survive. When he had seen Caesar for the first time, then younger, in his prime, he was in awe. He had believed that Caesar was the son of a god, and that everything happening was his will. Seeing Caesar now sick, though, made him question that story, though not his loyalty. Even if Caesar was only a man, he was a man with a great purpose, with a vision that other men were too weak to see.

All of these thoughts were making him uncomfortable, and he felt his anger at Eve coming back. How dare she, a degenerate, try to make him feel like this? To doubt himself and his cause? She was the problem. She was like an infection. The sooner he was rid of her, the better.


	14. Rabbits Sigh, Foxes Plan

I didn't sleep after Vulpes left. Instead I listened to my father's voice that I had saved on my Pip-Boy. One of them, my favourite, was of my mother and him flirting. It had actually been my mother's research disk describing how she was working on installing radiation filters in the Jefferson Memorial. Her voice was so smart, so soft, and so my mother. I loved it. I wish I could have seen their love in person, but I had to be thankful to have this recording. Even though I never got to see my parents together, their love was always hanging over me. Dad didn't talk about her very much, but when he did, it meant something special. "You have your mother's eyes," he'd tell me with a sad smile. He never blamed me for her death, and I never felt responsible because he'd remind me all the time how happy they'd been knowing she was pregnant with me.

My childhood was so very different from the one Vulpes had. I felt sorry for him. I knew love and protection and it had made me into who I was today. My father never lifted a hand to me, he never yelled at me. When I made a mistake or acted out, he would patiently explain what I had done wrong and how to be better.

Even Amata's father, who often acted tyrannically as the overseer, who was stuffy and stern and never smiled, loved his daughter. Of course his kind of love was the kind that smothered, that never let Amata be anything but perfect, but he had loved her.

Was Vulpes a product of his environment? Or would he have turned out just the same? That was more of a psychological question, and out of my area of expertise.

In no way did I condone, or even try to rationalise his behaviour, which was awful, but knowing what I knew now, I felt sorry for him. I let out a chuckle, laughing to an empty room. He'd love that, I thought sarcastically, me, the degenerate woman feeling sorry for him. It would be the worst insult.

Vulpes met his spy in the NCR. John Abrahms, to the profligates, was a paper pusher, a boring bureaucrat who spent his time in long meetings. To Vulpes, he was Scipio, a Frumentarius whom he had trained personally.

Vulpes could see that the last three years of NCR life had made Scipio soft, pudgy. He'd had too many brahmin steak dinners and too many glasses of wine in the three years he'd been in the NCR and it was showing. Yet he was loyal, and his position was necessary.

"Ave, true to Caesar," Scipio said softly, looking around. They were alone, Vulpes had made sure of it. A clandestine meeting in a dark alleyway which was empty.

"Ave. There is an agent who has been taken into NCR custody. He is very important." Vulpes described Nuntius in detail. "He needs to be released as soon as possible, as he is on a mission vital to the Legion."

"I know this guy. I heard he caused quite a stir when he woke up in a cell. He's being watched by two guards." Scipio paused thoughtfully. "I'll have his papers changed to say he was a drunk and disorderly, meant to sleep it off for a few days. He can be released tomorrow."

"Good, good. Get a message to him: if he does not complete his mission, he'll never see the eve of battle again. Exactly that."

"It will be done. Vale, Vulpes Inculta."


	15. Rabbit Negotiates with a Bull

Vulpes and I didn't speak during our travels back to The Fort. We bypassed the 188 Trading Post and avoided speaking to anyone. Though he no longer seemed angry at me, I would have preferred a discussion instead of this awkward silence. Several times I opened my mouth to say something, but what would I say? Sorry you had such a horrible childhood, and that I called you a monster, even if you are one. The idea was ridiculous.

We reached Cottonwood Cove long past sunset. The desert had turned cold, but I barely noticed.

Before the gate, Vulpes took off his ring and wordlessly held his hand out. I twisted that farce of an oath from my finger and dropped it into his hand. There was no clever remark, no smirk and it bothered me more than I liked.

Our relationship, such as it was, had been ruined, I supposed. On one hand, he was the man who seduced me and kidnapped me, but on the other hand I found I missed his quips and sly remarks.

Even though it was past midnight, the boat was waiting for us, perhaps Lucullus had been informed of our arrival.

The Fort was quieter, but there were still people walking around. Guards were stationed at key points along the perimeter, dogs were barking sporadically, and there were gentle quiet conversations going on around us.

Just inside Caesar's tent, Lucius stood, tall and proud. "Caesar awaits."

The three of us walked into Caesar's study where he was sitting behind his desk. He looked tired and old at that moment. I sat across from him and Vulpes stood beside me. Lucius took his place at the entrance.

"So you came back," Caesar said. "How fortunate for all of us." I stayed silent. "So what are your terms?"

"Siri and her healers will train under me. We will help both soldier and slave alike."

Caesar scoffed and tapped his fingers on his desk. "You're not helping the slaves. What a waste."

I spun the Hippocratic Oath back at him. "'Into whatsoever houses I enter, I will enter to help the sick, and I will abstain from all intentional wrongdoing and harm, especially from abusing the bodies of man or woman, _bond or free_.'" I sat back in my chair and issued a challenge with my eyes. "You used this oath on me to get me to help you. The oath is more than that."

Caesar swore under his breath, something in Latin, something with a lot of words. "You are pushing your luck, doctor."

"I'm not even done yet. I also want the healers to be free to heal, without the threat of being...accosted...by your men."

Caesar glanced at Vulpes, who nodded imperceptibly. "Go on, then and make it quick. You're trying my patience."

"When you're under my care, you are my patient and I am your doctor. We are not going to have a master-slave relationship."

"I won't tolerate your disrespect," he warned.

"I won't disrespect you, but I will not be afraid to speak my mind." I thought I saw Caesar's lips twitch, just a bit, but it was gone before I knew if it was a smile or a frown. When silence followed I continued, "When you're healed, and when Siri is trained to my satisfaction, I walk out of the Mojave." I wasn't so naive to think I could take down the Legion by myself, but I'd try to make life a little bit better for everyone while I was here. I hoped I could make my way back to the Capitol. Maybe the Brotherhood of Steel had another Liberty Prime in their sleeve, something to take on the Legion. I didn't know.

Vulpes didn't react to my changing of the terms. I didn't care, they'd changed and so what?

"I find it interesting that you're not discussing terms for your project. What was it called? Purity?" Caesar's eyes were shrewd. Of course he knew what the damned project was called.

I shrugged. "It's impossible without a G.E.C.K., and I obviously don't have the resources at my disposal to work on it."

I didn't like Caesar's smile, like I was a rat being looked at by a tomcat. "Deal. When can you do the surgery?"

"Tomorrow morning."

And so it was settled.


	16. Rabbit, True to Caesar

The next morning came quickly enough.

Caesar's room had been completely changed to suit my needs. There was a surgical table now beside his bed, with the Auto-Doc prepped right beside it. I saw not only my medical instruments, but others as well. Medical syringes filled with med-x and other things that I might need were lined up in a row. How despicable that Caesar and his ilk got the best medical treatment while making his soldiers and slaves use backwater tribal remedies to heal with.

Already wearing a patient's gown, Caesar looked as determined as ever. As I scrubbed myself in and prepped, I couldn't help but ask him what he would say to his Legion about his absence.

"My trusted men will make sure that my orders are followed. If I die, you will be crucified as a traitor by Legate Lanius himself."

Oh, great.

I made him lay on the bed and started the Auto-Doc. My Pip-Boy would engage with the Auto-Doc again, but I'd only use it as a nurse, so to speak.

"Count back from ten please," I asked, injecting Caesar with a dose of med-x.

"Decem, novem, octo...septum…" And he was out.

The surgery took several hours and went well. Despite his threat, it didn't phase me once I was working. Either I did my best and he lived or he died, I couldn't afford to worry about it. There was a moment, more than brief, where I considered just killing him outright and getting crucified. That's what my father would have done, wasn't it? But I'd heard from Siri that Caesar had no heir, and for him to die would mean that the Butcher of the East, Legate Lanius would then become the next Caesar. From the stories I'd heard, it might be best to keep Caesar around. He was the devil we all knew, and for all his swearing and anger, he was also a logical man, albeit a megalomaniac.

I had made sure there were no distractions, but Lucius stayed in the tent. He was quiet, but watchful. I didn't find his presence bad and he made sure not to get in my way.

While I washed my hands I told him he could move Caesar carefully from the surgical gurney onto the bed. The Auto-Doc was keeping a constant eye on his vitals, and I'd made it so I could check them at anytime on my Pip-Boy.

Lucius handled Caesar like a baby, with deference. This man cared for Caesar very much.

"Thanks," I said to Lucius who only nodded. "He probably won't wake up until tomorrow. I'll come back in a few hours and give him some antibiotics."

I wanted to see Siri and tell her the news. I found her in her medical tent with another woman who looked upset.

"Sorry," I said as I interrupted. Siri ushered me in quickly. Another one of Siri's healers came in after me with a bottle of water, which she gave to the crying woman.

"Close the flap," Siri ordered the new healer.

The woman who was in there was in obvious distress. "Is she alright?" I asked with concern. I didn't ask the woman directly only because she wasn't looking at me, only crying into her lap and holding the bottle of water like an afterthought.

Siri and her other healer gave each other a quick look. I understood they were trying to see if I could be trusted.

I held out my hand to the other woman, who shook it. "I'm Dr. Eve Camden. I'd like to help if I can, if not, I can go. Whatever is said in this tent stays in this tent as far as I'm concerned."

"I'm Renella." The woman, or girl as it were, couldn't have been over 19. She had a large scar on the side of her left temple that dipped to her eyes, making it half-closed. She wasn't a beautiful girl, but she was handsome, sturdy, and looked like belonged on a farm. She had a raspy voice. Renella deferred still to Siri who nodded.

The woman crying let out a wail, and Siri hushed her. "I can't lose another baby," she moaned.

"You're pregnant?" I asked her, but it was Siri who nodded. "Did she miscarry before?" Siri took me over to the corner of the tent, and Renella took her place comforting the pregnant woman.

"She lost her child, but not through miscarriage. If you are a slave, your child is taken from you as soon as it can be weaned and brought up in the temple." The temple, Siri explained, was the Temple of Mars, run by priestesses. She told me about how woman gave birth and their children were given to the temple to be raised in the Legion way, indoctrinated since birth. The more I heard, the more I seethed. Of course she didn't want to lose her baby.

"Does she want an abortion?"

Siri's eyes widened. "Do not speak of that! It's forbidden!"

Forbidden didn't necessarily meant it wasn't done. Women had been getting abortions since the beginning of time, even when it wasn't legal. Or safe. "Well...Maybe she miscarries," I said slowly. "Sometimes women who drink a tea mixed with certain herbs can _accidentally_ miscarry." I gave her the recipe. Siri nodded thoughtfully.

"I was using a different recipe, but it often caused so much bleeding after that some women never recovered," she admitted sadly.

I touched her shoulder. "We all try our best with what we have. A woman should have the choice." And that was my view on it. Vault 101 always had prophylactics on hand simply to stop overpopulation. Though the Overseer frowned on abortion, Dad always made sure women knew it was an option, should they choose. Only a few did, but Dad always made sure they felt safe with him.

"I can also try to do it surgically. It's much better that way."

"No! If they catch you, they'll crucify you."

They might, but I'd just saved Caesar's ass, so maybe they'd be lenient. Still, maybe I would wait before throwing in such radical ideas like a woman making her own choices in this backwards misogynistic hellhole.

There was nothing left for me to do at the moment. The pregnant woman would have to make that choice on her own, in her own time. I wasn't going to push her to do anything. I mentioned to Siri about my deal with Caesar. I could see in her eyes that she wanted to ask why, how did I get him to agree, but she didn't. I also didn't volunteer any information. I knew Caesar didn't want anyone to know he was sick, even if they suspected.

I knew the healers: Siri, Renella, and the four others I counted so far, were going to be suspicious of me. It was in their nature, a trait forced on them through fear and blood. I'd win them over, I'd try my best. Having beaten the odds before, I would find some way to do it again.

The day's end could not come soon enough for me, so when my head hit the pillow that night, I was blessed with a dreamless slumber.

Caesar was awake the next morning. Lucius, as always, took up his silent vigil, a human statue that barely gave me a nod when I greeted him.

"How do you feel?" I asked, shining a penlight into Caesar's eyes to test his vision.

"I'd be better if you weren't blinding me," he replied rudely.

"Grumpy as ever, looks like you're already getting back on track." I was determined not to let this man get under my skin. "You'll be happy to know your tumour is gone. I kept it in a little jar for you, if you want to see it."

He scoffed. "No, I don't want to see it."

"Suit yourself."

I'd prepared a light broth for Caesar, who, despite his attitude, was still weak. I propped his pillows up and sat on the edge of his bed. As I brought the spoon to his mouth, he clumsily grabbed it from my hand.

"I can feed myself, woman!" He glared at me while slurping from the spoon. I raised my eyebrow and held the bowl up for him. Of course he didn't acknowledge my help at all. After a few spoonfuls, he sighed wearily. I took the spoon from his hand and fed him more until he shook his head. "I feel like I went a few rounds with a deathclaw," he admitted.

"That's just from being under anesthesia. It should go away in a few days."

"I'm surprised you didn't kill me. It must have been tempting."

"It was," I admitted. "But I didn't, so you're welcome."

Caesar snorted with amusement. "Don't play like you're some hero, you knew what would happen to you."

"In some old world cultures, the person that killed the leader became the leader. Is that not how your Praetorian guards work?" I gestured offhandedly to Lucius.

"I am the Son of Mars," Caesar reminded me through gritted teeth. "I was chosen to lead through divine means."

Biting my tongue, I left it at that. "You should get some rest. I'll be here if you need anything." I moved from the side of the bed and placed the bowl and spoon on the desk.

Caesar slept, and I looked through his books. I wondered if he would mind if I read something. I took a book and looked at Lucius, who stared back at me blandly. That was as good of permission as I'd get.

Hours later, sitting on a chair with my feet up on the side of Caesar's bed, I was engrossed in one of his precious old world books.

"What are you reading?" He asked. I wondered if he'd been watching me read for a while because he didn't sound too groggy.

"Virgil. I hope you don't mind. I've never read it." The book itself was worn due to being read several times, but also because of the ravages of time.

"Read to me," Caesar commanded.

So I did. I started with Aeneas and his journey into the afterlife where his dead father tells him what is to become of his lineage. That Rome will be founded by Romulus, be changed by Caesar, and then, with time, usher in a new golden age. Rome would rule the world.

 _The mighty Caesar waits his vital hour,_

 _Impatient for the world, and grasps his promised power._

 _But next behold the youth of form divine,_

 _Ceasar himself, exalted in his line;_

 _Augustus, promised oft, and long foretold,_

 _Sent to the realm that Saturn ruled of old;_

I put the book down. Caesar looked at me curiously. "Can I ask you a question?"

"Go ahead." He put his head back wearily on the pillow.

"Why is Legate Lanius your heir? I've heard he is good in combat but…" I trailed off, not knowing how to delicately say that he seemed to have earned his name, which meant "Butcher" so I was told.

"But he is not fit to lead the Legion," Caesar finished for me. Surprised by his candor, I waited for him to continue. "Lanius is the greatest of my battlefield commanders. Some might call him a great man, but I'm not sure he qualifies." Caesar told me of how Lanius fought against the Legion both brilliantly and brutally, but like all tribes, the Legion's overwhelming forces soon had the Hidebarks backed into a corner. Lanius, enraged by the thought of his own chieftain's surrender to the Legion, attacked his own people in a fit of rage. "Lanius is savage. Savagely loyal, too, but only to me - he has no love for my Legion. But this has its uses."

"It has its uses now," I agreed. "I guess I'm just surprised you haven't found an Augustus of your own."

He smirked. "None are worthy to be my successor."

And that was that.

The week went by and I actually found myself not hating my time with Caesar. Sure he was still a grumpy dictator with the humanity of a rock, but he had warmed up to me. He was making some jokes and letting me mouth off to him without threatening to crucify me - great progress.

He even shared the philosophy behind his madness with me, Hegelian Dialectics. That a thesis (the NCR) creates its antithesis (the Legion) and through their conflict creates synergy. It sounded interesting on paper, but I thought Caesar was a megalomaniac for even doing all of this just to create some sort of new society. When he explained it, there was this small moment where I thought he might be onto something. He was so charismatic when he wanted to be.

"It sounds like you want a hegemon," I commented off-handedly.

Caesar made a noise of approval."Yes. With total power, total control, comes peace. Peace through fear. I already have the largest united military. It's only a matter of time." Caesar was looking at me shrewdly, the edge of his mouth in a small smile. "You would have made a good Legate."

"I like fixing wounds, not causing them. You might want to try it some time."

"Don't be impertinent." His tolerance of me had reached its daily limit and I was dismissed.

When I wasn't with Caesar, I was with Siri and the other healers. They were quick studies and I was surprised at their competence. Most of them were skilled midwives, and we delivered one baby. Siri told me that in Flagstaff babies were delivered more often, but because the Fort being just a military encampment many soldiers were more focused on battle and practice than the women. That was definitely a good thing.

I hadn't seen Vulpes Inculta in a long time. I don't know what kind of malevolent plans he had going on, but he wasn't at the Fort.

Then came the news that the Monorail had been blown up. Everyone was happy, even the slaves. I didn't hold it against them, they didn't know what had been going on out there. It seemed like a Legion-controlled Mojave was now a very real possibility. Myself and many others had thought the Legion was kind of a strange joke, like men playing dress up with big knives, but we had underestimated their loyalty and discipline.

Nuntius strolled in like the prodigal son after that. I was pleased to see he favoured his right arm still. I stood off to the side of the tent, not wanting to be there, but not wanting any attention if I left. Nuntius' eyes found mine anyway, and though there wasn't any hostility leftover for me from the fight with Vulpes, they were still uncomfortably full of sick interest.

Caesar stood in full dictator mode, smiling coldly at Nuntius. The tent was full of Legion members. This was not only to celebrate the destruction of the Monorail, but also a show of strength by Caesar, who could now look everyone in the eyes as a healthy, strong man again.

"So you return, Nuntius," Caesar stated loudly. "And your reward is waiting for you." Nuntius' eyes looked again at me. Oh God no. I had to choke down the nausea that came over me. "Your old friend has been found by none other than Vulpes Inculta. Bring him in."

Him? My stomach settled suddenly.

Vulpes and some guards entered hauling a man in a checkered suit. "You got it all wrong," he kept repeating. "I'm no threat to -" his voice cut off when he saw Nuntius who, once again, had a face overcome with fury. "Shit," the man finished lamely. The two guards who each had an arm threw him before Caesar and Nuntius.

Caesar laughed unpleasantly. "Your gift, Nuntius, the man who shot you and left you to die. The moron actually tried to sneak into the Fort. Vulpes found him easily. Who the fuck would wear _that_ monstrosity to sneak in here?" Everyone laughed. Benny's face was red, but I could also see it was quite bruised now that he was closer. One of his eyes was swollen shut and the fingers on both his hands stuck out at weird angles. They'd tortured him. I looked away. "What happens to him is up to you."

Nuntius was practically salivating. He kicked Benny in the stomach and Benny fell over crying out in pain. "Too bad...he's...already been tortured," he said wistfully.

"The information he gave us was very interesting indeed," Caesar mentioned casually.

"Then...crucify...him" Nuntius panted with excitement. "But I want to keep...the...suit." The two guards grabbed Benny who was now yelling obscenities about all their mothers.

I shook my head in disbelief and when I looked up again, Vulpes was watching me. He broke eye contact after a second, turned, and walked out after Benny, Nuntius, and the guards.

I walked into my tent and closed the flap. I could still hear the screams long after they'd stopped.

When it was the middle of the night, I woke up from a short sleep. I walked quietly out of the tent. A new praetorian guard stood where Lucius normally did. I guess the guy did get some sleep sometimes. He ignored me. I guess having the Mark of Caesar still gave me some authority to come and go.

Benny was easy to find; they'd left him by the entrance to the Fort. A place of honour, or dishonour as it were. While there were some people around, most of them were busy with other things and ignored me. The Legion liked to use old world power lines in their crucifictions. Benny's knees were just above my head. He was naked except for his underwear. His stomach was covered in deep purple bruises.

I stood in front of Benny who looked awful. He still managed to grin lopsidedly down at me. "That's a pretty sight. Are you the angel here to guide me to the pearly gates?"

I couldn't speak at first. "I'm sorry," I told him. "I can't save you."

"Life's full of disappointments, baby."

I took the syringe out of my belt. "I can make the pain stop."

For the first time, Benny looked serious. "Do it," he said thickly.

I nodded. "You won't feel a thing anymore. You'll just go to sleep." I took the cap off the needle and reached up, jamming it into his thigh and pressing the end.

"Thanks, doll…" Benny smiled sadly, then his head drooped. It wouldn't take long, only a few minutes.

I waited for his chest to become still.

"I thought doctors weren't supposed to take lives." Vulpes. I didn't turn around.

"A doctor's only thought is for the well-being of her patients," I said softly. Benny's chest stopped. "A painless death can be a gift." I knew Vulpes was right behind me. I could just feel him.

"Are you going to tell?"

"No." I could hear his footsteps now that he wanted me to, and he was walking away from me.


	17. A Rabbit, Dammed

Two weeks later Mr. House was assassinated. I had no doubt it was Vulpes who did it. I learned later that Benny had been working against House as well, and actually had a backdoor into the mausoleum that was the Lucky 38.

The strip would no doubt be in turmoil.

A month later, President Kimball had been assassinated right in the middle of a speech. As Caesar openly kept me around, I heard all about it. A Frumentarii agent had sneaked a bomb through security and planted it in the helmet of an NCR soldier being recognised for his bravery. The bomb went off and the agent had yelled "For Caesar!" before being killed himself.

Caesar had been overjoyed. I was becoming tired of pretending to be okay with everything during our discussions. If he noticed, he didn't care, but he didn't call on me as often as he used to. I wondered why I was still here. Siri was practically running things on her own now. Then the realisation hit me one day while I was laying on my bed: Caesar was never going to let me go. I knew too much. He hadn't even tried to hide anything from me. I had questions, but the biggest one was why? Why keep me around? If he was going to kill me, he could have done it by now.

Then everything took a turn for the worse, which I hadn't thought possible.

Helping Siri with a slave man who had cut himself sharpening the machete of a soldier, I suddenly felt dizzy. I grabbed the edge of the desk in the medical tent.

"Eve? Are you feeling alright?" Siri asked me with concern. I moved behind the desk and sat down in the chair.

"Fine, just a bit dizzy."

Siri looked at me for a few moments before finishing up with the slave man. She stitched his wounds and gave him a numbing ointment for the pain. When he left, it was just her and I in the tent.

My dizziness turned to nausea and I vomited into a wastebasket. I groaned and wiped my mouth with a cloth. Siri brought me a bottle of water. I rinsed my mouth and spat, then took a few large sips.

"Are you feeling a nauseous often?" she asked calmly. She brought over a wet cloth and held it to my head.

"Sometimes. I thought I'd get used to seeing crucifictions," I said sardonically, but Siri didn't smile.

"Your bleeding, has it stopped?"

"What does that have…?" Oh no, no, no. I'd lost track of the time since coming here, but I hadn't had my period for a few months. I just had been so busy running around, avoiding getting crucified, saving the life of a dictator that I hadn't noticed. "Fuck." I put my hand down on my belly. If I was pregnant then the father was… "Fuck," I repeated again.

"Do you want me to make a tea for you?" Siri asked kindly.

I looked at her blankly, then understood what she meant. Of course, the tea. It had only been a few months, the tea could work. I could also sneak into Caesar's tent and use the Auto-Doc if I could manage. Yet, I was wracked with indecision. A baby, a child of my own to be cared for, my father's grandchild, it was something to think about. To have that baby here, in the Legion, who knows what would happen to it? If it was a boy, could I stand to see him as cold and brutal as his father? Or could I see my daughter lose all of her potential due to these barbaric ideas the Legion had concerning women?

Siri was still waiting for an answer, so I shook my head. "I have to think about it," I told her honestly. "Please don't tell anyone."

She nodded. I knew I had her loyalty up to a certain point, and I knew she cared deeply for the people she helped. I also knew that I wouldn't expect her to lie to save herself if it came to that, and I wouldn't blame her.

Calling it an early day, I walked out of the tent in a daze.

I moved to the sparring yard where I could see Vulpes training with a group of subordinates. I watched with interest. Interest because this was the father of the child growing inside of me. My earlier musings on nature versus nurture were taking hold. Was Vulpes the monster I thought he was, or was he a product of the Legion? Was there, deep down and hiding, the remnants of a good person? Was Vulpes perfect for this life because he was always a monster? Or had this life molded him?

Vulpes was sparring with someone, he would stop every few seconds and adjust what his trainee was doing. Every once and awhile, he would show an advantage and strike the other man to prove a point. It sounded hard and tough, but the other man simply nodded at Vulpes' instruction and continue.

I stroked my stomach unconsciously. Don't worry, baby, I thought to the fetus, you have Camden genetics too. I had already begun to think of the child as my own. I knew, though I had the choice, I would fight for this child. I had to escape somehow. I couldn't save the slaves, I couldn't save the Mojave from the Legion, but I had to at least save my baby. If I couldn't, then I would take the tea or find another way. I would not have my baby brought up like this, not in this place, but I hoped I didn't have to do that.

I knew decisions like these were the hardest decisions a woman ever had to make, and I always tried to understand, but being here like this, I knew how agonising the thoughts were. Two sides of me were warring: the pragmatist and the optimist.

There was a sudden hush that came over the camp, which interrupted my reverie. People suddenly started running about.

I stopped a slave in the middle of transporting a large bottle of water. "What's going on?"

"The Legate Lanius has arrived," he exclaimed quickly before running off on his business.

I walked to the main pathway, standing aside but still able to have a good view. The Legate strode in like a giant. He was much taller than I'd imagined, taller than any man I'd seen. He walked like a man who owned the entire world. The golden helmet glinted in the sun. His face was hidden behind it. It depicted the face of Mars with horns and a beard that looked like tentacles of a sort. It must have been incredibly heavy. I'd heard his face got ripped off in his fight with his own tribe during the Legion takeover. I didn't know how true it was, and apparently no one had seen his face ever. If Caesar was the bull, then this man was the minotaur from myth.

This could only mean one thing: the battle for Hoover Dam was imminent.

Vulpes had been busy. He hadn't had much time to think about Eve, which he preferred. He had assassinated Mr. House personally, though it hardly seemed like much of a feat; the man had looked more like the meat jerky he took during long travels. It had disgusted Vulpes to see someone too weak to die that he would prefer to live like an invalid. The Securitron of Benny's had been quite helpful in aiding Vulpes. Benny hadn't even used any sort of security measures, so arrogant he had been. Not so arrogant now, Vulpes mused. He had been so curious to see what Eve was doing with Benny that he hadn't stopped her from euthanizing the man.

He knew Eve was watching him while he trained. There was a part of him that was arrogant enough to want to show off for her, but he quelled it, if only a little bit. When he looked at her through the corner of his eyes, he saw she was troubled. What was the answer to the question she seemed to be asking herself, he wondered.

When he he heard the familiar drumming of war, he knew the Legate had finally arrived. Vulpes wiped the sweat from his brow with a towel. Instead of watching Lanius, he watched Eve's reaction to his arrival. She looked awed, then her mouth grew grim. Subtly, she ran her hand over her stomach, deep in her own thoughts.

Vulpes' eyes narrowed. His rabbit was thinking too hard. She caught him staring at her and her face flushed. Eve looked away and left hastily.


	18. Bull Serves Rabbit for a Feast

I wanted nothing more than to escape. I hadn't told anyone, not even Siri, though I'm sure she could have guessed. For the last week I'd been short, irritable, and lost in the deepest of thoughts. Siri, of course, understood and placated me with small touches and smiles. The rest of the healers were understandably confused, so I tried to make more of an effort towards normalcy. And in honesty, there wasn't much to be done as far as medicine was concerned. Things were quiet, hushed, as though we were in the midst of the eye of the storm. The storm of war.

The Legate strode through the fort like an untouchable man. He didn't have to raise his voice to be heard. He was the same as Vulpes, in that regard, yet Vulpes had a way of speaking clearly with detachment, Lanius' voice was deep and echoed through the mask.

More than once did I feel the eyes of the Legate on my back, though it would be impossible to perfectly tell what he was looking at. I just felt it, and my instincts were saying that it was me being watched. Perhaps I'd become paranoid in my time here.

A plan had been formulating in my head. It wasn't foolproof, and I didn't know if it would work, but so far it was the only idea that I kept coming back to. I'd have to wait until the perfect time and I'd have to have more than a little luck on my side.

Knowing everything that I did, I was surprised when Caesar asked me to join him and his most trusted officers in the dining tent. Apparently it was meant to be a formal occasion, and Siri helped me get ready in my room.

"This was made for you," she told me, holding up the Roman style dress up to my body and nodding with satisfaction.

"It's beautiful," I admitted. It was sea-green with gold embellishments. There were no sleeves, but thick, twisted straps. The v-lined collar plunged down to an empire waist, leaving little to the imagination. "This will keep their eyes off my...other predicament," I murmured with a snort. I thoughtlessly rubbed my stomach. The skirt itself was long and layered. It flowed as I paced back and forth in my tent. "This is absurd," I said finally. I stopped and turned to look at Siri. "What game is Caesar playing?"

She shook her head. "I don't know, Eve. I only know you should be careful." She belted a golden circlet under my breasts and put my hair up in an elegantly high ponytail.

"This is ridiculous." But when I looked in the mirror, a stately woman looked back at me. My eyes reflected back at me unamused, and yet I secretly felt feminine and beautiful.

All eyes were on me as I walked into the dining tent. Caesar stood up, and after a few moments Vulpes followed, then the Legate seated at Caesar's right hand, then Lucius who was beside Lanius. Nuntius was also there at the end of the table, ogling me openly. Any beauty I felt for myself now was tainted by his looks.

Caesar took my hand and sat me at his left. Vulpes was beside me.

Everyone except Caesar was wondering what was happening. If they thought I was in on this game, they were sorely mistaken. A slave filled the goblet before me with water.

Caesar stayed standing and so did everyone else but me. "Tomorrow we march on Hoover Dam," he stated, his voice clear. "Tomorrow we annihilate the NRC profligates and take what is ours. From the ashes of New Vegas there will emerge a new city, our new state, our Nova Roma!" Lucius started hitting the table with his fist and everyone but Caesar and I followed. The pounding continued for a good while until Caesar held up his hand in a call for silence. "A new age begins for the Legion. A new age calls for new changes. I have at my side Eve, the doctor from the Capitol Wasteland." I blushed and looked down. "She has the ability to transform the Mojave into a paradise. And so I give to her this gift." He clapped his hands and a praetorian walked forward with a briefcase. My breath got stuck in my throat and I couldn't breathe for a few seconds.

A G.E.C.K. I would recognise it anywhere. It had the Vault-Tec logo emblazoned on the top. The praetorian set it in front of me.

"Open it," Caesar ordered, though not unkindly. I undid the clasps and popped the top upward. And there it was. That paradise could be encapsulated in such a small package still awed me. There were the seeds, engineered to grow even in the worst conditions. They were made to spread and seed faster than normal. There were the parts to attach to the water purifier. Before me was everything I'd ever wanted. I was speechless. I looked at Caesar numbly. His mouth twitched in amusement. "A gift to you, Eve. As soon as Hoover Dam is ours, it is yours. After we take Nova Roma, we will be married."

"What?" My question echoed through the room. I wasn't the only one shocked to silence. Lucius was looking at Caesar with his eyes wide. Vulpes, of course, showed no emotion, and who knew what Lanius was thinking under his mask.

It was Nuntius who broke the silence. "No!" He swept all the dishes before him onto the floor with his hands. His face was red and twitching and as he stepped forward menacingly, I was pulled to my feet by Vulpes, who placed me behind him.

Caesar looked almost bored. "Behave yourself," he warned, but Nuntius crouched and kept stepping towards him.

"You...can't...you promised...I could have...her!"

"I changed my mind." Caesar nodded to the praetorians who had been watching Nuntius. They grabbed him by his arms and it took four of them to subdue him. Nuntius was trying to shake them off like an animal caught in a trap. "Because you have served me well, I'm not going to kill you," Caesar told him. To the guards he said simply, "Take him away. If I catch you in Legion territory again, you'll be killed."

They dragged him kicking and screaming out of the tent, and I could hear him cursing until his voice faded away.

Caesar sat down like nothing had happened. Slowly, we all joined him. Slaves brought us our meals. I clamped down on my nausea as the smell of the cooked meat hit me. Taking deep breaths, I tried to steady myself.

A hand touched my thigh and squeezed gently. Vulpes. He didn't look at me, but was instead talking to Lucius about something. He was warning me, perhaps, to play the game.

"Are you so surprised?" Caesar murmured. He had grabbed my hand gently on the table, making a show of our union.

"Considering you said I could leave, yes." My jaw clenched. "Or maybe it's the fact that you'd promised me to Nuntius." I kept my tone low and civil. I was sure Vulpes was listening.

"What a waste," Caesar replied. "I told him what I needed to. That man is deranged."

"And me?"

"And you. What better gift for the woman who saved my life but to make her an empress? It was you who put the idea in my head, after all."

"I don't think I ever said I wanted to be your empress. In fact, I'm pretty sure that never came up in our conversations," I hissed.

Caesar chewed on his food in contemplation, leaving me hanging before answering. "You talked about how I needed a better heir. You were right, I have no wife, no sons. Who better than you? You're smart, you're capable, you're beautiful. What do you want? To go crawling back to the Brotherhood of Steel? Hide in their lair? You should feel fucking grateful."

I could tell Caesar was reaching his limit. I would have to placate him. "It's just...why not ask me first?"

He snorted. "Ask. I don't have to ask for anything."

And that was that. It hadn't occurred to Caesar that anyone would ever say no. He was giving me a title, a place beside him in his little empire, what more could I want? I smiled tightly and picked at my food. He didn't know I had a secret. I didn't care about Project Purity anymore, and he could take his G.E.C.K and throw it into the river.

Tomorrow was the battle for the Dam, tomorrow I would escape.


End file.
